JP2019133757A - Electrode manufacturing device and electrode manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

To circumvent failure of an electrode manufacturing device, without complicating the setting work.SOLUTION: An electrode manufacturing device 100 includes a supply mechanism 110 for supplying an electrode base metal 60 having a strip conductive sheet 61, and multiple positive electrodes 36 arranged intermittently on the conductive sheet 61 in the longitudinal direction thereof, and transporting the electrode base metal 60 in the longitudinal direction, a detector 140 for detecting the front edges 36a in the longitudinal direction of the multiple positive electrodes 36 in the electrode base metal 60, a cutting mechanism 120 for forming an electrode by cutting the electrode base metal 60 in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction, and a controller 160 for controlling operation of the electrode manufacturing device 100. The controller 160 controls the supply mechanism 110 to stop supply of the electrode base metal 60, in response to the fact that the detector 140 did not detect the front edge 36a while the electrode base metal 60 is transported by a distance Dth in the longitudinal direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

  One aspect of the present invention relates to an electrode manufacturing apparatus and an electrode manufacturing method.

  An apparatus for manufacturing an electrode by cutting a long electrode base material is known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a manufacturing method in which a strip is formed by cutting an electrode material (electrode base material) supplied from a winding roll at equal intervals along the longitudinal direction, and an electrode is punched from the strip. Have been described.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2015-2149

  The electrode manufacturing apparatus as described above may be configured to automatically stop in response to manufacturing a preset number of electrodes. However, for example, when the length of the electrode base material is short and the set number is too large, it may be impossible to manufacture a set number of electrodes from the supplied electrode base material. In such a case, the electrode manufacturing apparatus tends to continue supplying the electrode base material to further manufacture the electrode, which may cause a failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus. In order to avoid such a situation, an operator needs to know the number of active material layers included in the electrode base material, and then perform complicated setting work such as setting the number to the number of electrodes to be manufactured. Necessary.

  One aspect of the present invention provides an electrode manufacturing apparatus and an electrode manufacturing method capable of avoiding a failure without complicating setting work.

  An electrode manufacturing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a strip-shaped conductive sheet and a plurality of active material layers arranged intermittently along the longitudinal direction of the conductive sheet on the conductive sheet. A supply mechanism for conveying the electrode base material in the longitudinal direction, a detection unit for detecting edges in the longitudinal direction of the plurality of active material layers in the electrode base material, and the electrode base material intersecting the longitudinal direction A cutting mechanism that forms an electrode by cutting in a direction, and a control unit that controls the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus. The control unit causes the supply mechanism to stop supplying the electrode base material in response to the detection unit not detecting an edge while the electrode base material is conveyed by a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction.

  In this electrode manufacturing apparatus, the supply of the electrode base material is stopped when the edge of the active material layer is not detected while the electrode base material is conveyed for a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction. For example, when the rear end portion of the electrode base material is reached, the edge of the active material layer is not detected, and thus the supply of the electrode base material is stopped. Therefore, even before the preset number of electrodes has been manufactured, the supply of the electrode base material is stopped without continuing to supply the electrode base material, so the number of electrodes to be manufactured is accurately set. There is no need to do. As a result, it is possible to avoid failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus without complicating the setting work.

  The control unit may control the cutting mechanism to cut the electrode base material in response to the detection unit detecting the edge. In this case, an electrode including an active material having a detected edge can be manufactured.

  A detection part may detect the edge located downstream in a conveyance direction among the edges which each of several active material layers has. The active material layer may be formed with reference to an edge located downstream in the transport direction. Since the manufacturing tolerance may be included in the size of the active material layer, the detection accuracy of the active material layer can be improved by using the edge used as a reference in the process of forming the active material layer.

  The plurality of active material layers may be arranged at a predetermined pitch along the longitudinal direction, and the predetermined distance may be larger than the pitch. When the edge is not detected while the electrode base material is transported by a distance larger than the pitch between the active material layers adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction, upstream of the active material layer having the previously detected edge, It can be considered that there is no active material layer. For this reason, the supply of the electrode base material is stopped by stopping the supply of the electrode base material in response to the fact that the edge is not detected while the electrode base material is transported by a distance larger than the pitch between the active material layers. The stop can be performed with high accuracy.

  The conductive sheet may have a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface. The plurality of active material layers may include a plurality of positive electrode active material layers and a plurality of negative electrode active material layers. The plurality of positive electrode active material layers may be intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the first surface, and the plurality of negative electrode active material layers are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the second surface. And may be provided at positions corresponding to the plurality of positive electrode active material layers. In this case, it is possible to avoid failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus without complicating the setting work in manufacturing the bipolar electrode.

  An electrode manufacturing method according to one aspect of the present invention is a manufacturing method using an electrode manufacturing apparatus. The electrode manufacturing method supplies an electrode base material having a strip-shaped conductive sheet and a plurality of active material layers intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction of the conductive sheet on the conductive sheet, Cutting the electrode base material in a direction crossing the longitudinal direction in accordance with the step of conveying the electrode base material in the direction and detecting the edges in the longitudinal direction of each of the plurality of active material layers in the electrode base material And a step of stopping the supply of the electrode base material when an edge is not detected while the electrode base material is conveyed for a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction.

  In this electrode manufacturing method, the supply of the electrode base material is stopped when the edge of the active material layer is not detected while the electrode base material is conveyed for a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction. For example, when the rear end portion of the electrode base material is reached, the edge of the active material layer is not detected, and thus the supply of the electrode base material is stopped. Therefore, even before the preset number of electrodes has been manufactured, the supply of the electrode base material is stopped without continuing to supply the electrode base material, so the number of electrodes to be manufactured is accurately set. There is no need to do. As a result, it is possible to avoid failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus without complicating the setting work.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus can be avoided without complicating the setting work.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a power storage device including a power storage module. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a power storage module constituting the power storage device of FIG. FIG. 3 is a side view schematically showing the electrode manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a part of the electrode manufacturing apparatus of FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a part of the electrode manufacturing apparatus of FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a part of the electrode manufacturing apparatus of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same reference numerals are used for the same or equivalent elements, and redundant descriptions are omitted. In the drawing, an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is shown as necessary. For example, the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are horizontal directions, and the Z-axis direction is a vertical direction.

  An embodiment of a power storage device will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a power storage device including a power storage module. The power storage device 10 shown in FIG. 1 is used as a battery for various vehicles such as a forklift, a hybrid vehicle, and an electric vehicle. The power storage device 10 includes a plurality (three in the present embodiment) of power storage modules 12, but may include a single power storage module 12. The power storage module 12 is a bipolar battery, for example. The power storage module 12 is a secondary battery such as a nickel hydride secondary battery or a lithium ion secondary battery, but may be an electric double layer capacitor. In the following description, a nickel metal hydride secondary battery is illustrated.

  The plurality of power storage modules 12 can be stacked via a conductive plate 14 such as a metal plate. When viewed from the stacking direction, the power storage module 12 and the conductive plate 14 have, for example, a rectangular shape. Details of each power storage module 12 will be described later. The conductive plates 14 are also arranged outside the power storage modules 12 positioned at both ends in the stacking direction (Z-axis direction) of the power storage modules 12. The conductive plate 14 is electrically connected to the adjacent power storage module 12. Thereby, the some electrical storage module 12 is connected in series in the lamination direction. In the stacking direction, a positive electrode terminal 24 is connected to the conductive plate 14 located at one end, and a negative electrode terminal 26 is connected to the conductive plate 14 located at the other end. The positive terminal 24 may be integral with the conductive plate 14 to which the positive terminal 24 is connected. The negative electrode terminal 26 may be integrated with the conductive plate 14 to which the negative electrode terminal 26 is connected. The positive electrode terminal 24 and the negative electrode terminal 26 extend in a direction intersecting the stacking direction (X-axis direction). The positive and negative terminals 24 and 26 can charge and discharge the power storage device 10.

  The conductive plate 14 can also function as a heat radiating plate for releasing heat generated in the power storage module 12. When a refrigerant such as air passes through the plurality of gaps 14a provided inside the conductive plate 14, heat from the power storage module 12 can be efficiently released to the outside. Each gap 14a extends, for example, in a direction (Y-axis direction) intersecting the stacking direction. As viewed from the stacking direction, the area of the conductive plate 14 is smaller than the area of the power storage module 12, but may be the same as or larger than the area of the power storage module 12. Further, when viewed from the stacking direction, the conductive plate 14 may cover the power storage module 12.

  The power storage device 10 may include a restraining member 16 that restrains the alternately stacked power storage modules 12 and conductive plates 14 in the stacking direction. The restraining member 16 includes a pair of restraining plates 16A and 16B and a connecting member (bolt 18 and nut 20) for joining the restraining plates 16A and 16B to each other. An insulating film 22 such as a resin film is disposed between the restraining plates 16A and 16B and the conductive plate. Each restraint plate 16A, 16B is comprised, for example with metals, such as iron. When viewed from the stacking direction, each of the restraining plates 16A and 16B and the insulating film 22 has a rectangular shape, for example. When viewed from the stacking direction, the area of the insulating film 22 is larger than the area of the conductive plate 14, and the insulating film 22 may cover the conductive plate 14. Moreover, the area of each constraining plate 16A, 16B is larger than the area of the power storage module 12 when viewed from the stacking direction, and each constraining plate 16A, 16B may cover the power storage module 12. When viewed from the stacking direction, an insertion hole H1 through which the shaft portion of the bolt 18 is inserted is provided at a position on the outer side of the power storage module 12 at the edge portion of the restraint plate 16A. Similarly, an insertion hole H2 through which the shaft portion of the bolt 18 is inserted is provided at a position on the outer side of the power storage module 12 at the edge portion of the restraining plate 16B when viewed from the stacking direction. When each restraint plate 16A, 16B has a rectangular shape when viewed from the stacking direction, the insertion hole H1 and the insertion hole H2 are located at the corners of the restraint plates 16A, 16B.

  One constraining plate 16A is abutted against the conductive plate 14 connected to the negative terminal 26 via the insulating film 22, and the other constraining plate 16B has the insulating film 22 applied to the conductive plate 14 connected to the positive terminal 24. Has been hit through. For example, the bolt 18 is passed through the insertion hole H1 and the insertion hole H2 from one restraint plate 16A toward the other restraint plate 16B. A nut 20 is screwed onto the tip of the bolt 18 protruding from the other restraining plate 16B. Accordingly, the insulating film 22, the conductive plate 14, and the power storage module 12 are sandwiched and unitized, and a restraining load is applied in the stacking direction.

  With reference to FIG. 2, a power storage module constituting the power storage device will be described. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a power storage module constituting the power storage device of FIG. The power storage module 12 illustrated in FIG. 2 includes a stacked body 30 in which a plurality of bipolar electrodes 32 are stacked. When viewed from the stacking direction of the bipolar electrode 32, the stacked body 30 has, for example, a rectangular shape. A separator 40 may be disposed between the adjacent bipolar electrodes 32.

  Each bipolar electrode 32 includes an electrode plate 34, a positive electrode 36 provided on the surface 34 c of the electrode plate 34, and a negative electrode 38 provided on the surface 34 d of the electrode plate 34. In the stacked body 30, the positive electrode 36 of one bipolar electrode 32 faces the negative electrode 38 of one bipolar electrode 32 adjacent in the stacking direction across the separator 40, and the negative electrode 38 of one bipolar electrode 32 connects the separator 40. It faces the positive electrode 36 of the other bipolar electrode 32 that is adjacent in the stacking direction.

  In the stacking direction, an electrode plate 34 having a negative electrode 38 disposed on the inner surface (the lower surface in the drawing) is disposed at one end of the stacked body 30. The electrode plate 34 corresponds to a negative terminal electrode. In the stacking direction, an electrode plate 34 having a positive electrode 36 disposed on the inner surface (the upper surface in the drawing) is disposed at the other end of the stacked body 30. This electrode plate 34 corresponds to a positive terminal electrode. The negative electrode 38 of the negative electrode-side termination electrode faces the positive electrode 36 of the uppermost bipolar electrode 32 with the separator 40 interposed therebetween. The positive electrode 36 of the positive terminal electrode is opposed to the negative electrode 38 of the lowermost bipolar electrode 32 with the separator 40 interposed therebetween. The electrode plates 34 of these termination electrodes are connected to the adjacent conductive plates 14 (see FIG. 1).

  The power storage module 12 includes a cylindrical resin portion 50 that extends in the stacking direction of the bipolar electrodes 32 and accommodates the stacked body 30. The resin part 50 holds the peripheral edge part 34 a of the plurality of electrode plates 34. The resin part 50 is configured to surround the laminated body 30. The resin portion 50 has, for example, a rectangular shape when viewed from the lamination direction of the bipolar electrode 32. That is, the resin portion 50 has a rectangular frame shape, for example.

  The resin portion 50 is provided on the outer side of the first seal portion 52 in the direction (X-axis direction and Y-axis direction) intersecting the stacking direction with the first seal portion 52 holding the peripheral edge portion 34a of the electrode plate 34. 2 seal portions 54.

  The first seal portion 52 constituting the inner wall of the resin portion 50 is provided over the entire circumference of the peripheral edge portion 34a of the electrode plate 34 in the plurality of bipolar electrodes 32 (that is, the stacked body 30). The first seal portion 52 is welded, for example, to the peripheral portion 34a of the electrode plate 34, and seals the peripheral portion 34a. That is, the first seal part 52 is joined to the peripheral edge part 34 a of the electrode plate 34. The peripheral portion 34 a of the electrode plate 34 of each bipolar electrode 32 is held by the first seal portion 52. The peripheral portions 34 a of the electrode plates 34 disposed at both ends of the stacked body 30 are also held by the first seal portion 52. Thereby, an internal space partitioned liquid-tightly by the electrode plates 34 and 34 and the first seal portion 52 is formed between the electrode plates 34 and 34 adjacent in the stacking direction. An electrolytic solution (not shown) made of an alkaline solution such as an aqueous potassium hydroxide solution is accommodated in the internal space.

  The second seal portion 54 constituting the outer wall of the resin portion 50 covers the outer peripheral surface 52 a of the first seal portion 52 extending in the stacking direction of the bipolar electrode 32. The inner peripheral surface 54a of the second seal portion 54 is welded, for example, to the outer peripheral surface 52a of the first seal portion 52, and seals the outer peripheral surface 52a. That is, the second seal portion 54 is joined to the outer peripheral surface 52 a of the first seal portion 52. The welding surface (joint surface) of the second seal portion 54 with respect to the first seal portion 52 forms, for example, four rectangular planes.

  The electrode plate 34 is a rectangular metal foil made of nickel, for example. The peripheral edge 34a of the electrode plate 34 is an uncoated region where the positive electrode active material and the negative electrode active material are not coated. In the uncoated region, the electrode plate 34 is exposed. The uncoated region is held by the first seal portion 52 that constitutes the inner wall of the resin portion 50. An example of the positive electrode active material constituting the positive electrode 36 is nickel hydroxide. Examples of the negative electrode active material constituting the negative electrode 38 include a hydrogen storage alloy. When viewed from the stacking direction, the formation region of the negative electrode 38 on the surface 34 d of the electrode plate 34 may be slightly larger than the formation region of the positive electrode 36 on the surface 34 c of the electrode plate 34.

  The separator 40 is formed in a sheet shape, for example. The separator 40 has a rectangular shape, for example. Examples of the material forming the separator 40 include a porous film made of a polyolefin resin such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), a woven fabric or a non-woven fabric made of polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), methylcellulose, and the like. . Further, the separator 40 may be reinforced with a vinylidene fluoride resin compound or the like.

  The resin portion 50 (the first seal portion 52 and the second seal portion 54) is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape by, for example, injection molding using an insulating resin. Examples of the resin material constituting the resin portion 50 include polypropylene (PP), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), and modified polyphenylene ether (modified PPE).

  Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the manufacturing apparatus of the bipolar electrode 32 of the electrical storage module 12 is demonstrated. FIG. 3 is a side view schematically showing the electrode manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment.

  The electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 3 is a manufacturing apparatus for the bipolar electrode 32. The electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 manufactures the bipolar electrode 32 by cutting a strip-shaped long electrode base material 60. The electrode base material 60 is an electrode material that is the basis of the bipolar electrode 32, and is a strip-like long conductive sheet 61 and a plurality of active material layers (positive electrode 36 and negative electrode 38) provided on the conductive sheet 61. And having. The conductive sheet 61 is a member that is the basis of the electrode plate 34, and includes a surface 61a (first surface) and a surface 61b (second surface) opposite to the surface 61a. The plurality of active material layers are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction of the conductive sheet 61 (hereinafter simply referred to as “longitudinal direction”). The plurality of active material layers include a plurality of positive electrode active material layers (positive electrode 36) and a plurality of negative electrode active material layers (negative electrode 38).

  The plurality of positive electrodes 36 are intermittently arranged at a predetermined pitch Dp along the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 a of the conductive sheet 61. The pitch Dp is an interval between the front edges 36a of the two positive electrodes 36 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction. The plurality of negative electrodes 38 are intermittently arranged at a predetermined pitch Dn along the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 b of the conductive sheet 61. The pitch Dn is the distance between the front edges 38a of the two negative electrodes 38 that are adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction. The pitch Dp and the pitch Dn are equal to each other, and the plurality of positive electrodes 36 and the plurality of negative electrodes 38 are provided at positions corresponding to each other. That is, the positive electrode 36 and the negative electrode 38 are arranged so that the positive electrode 36 and the negative electrode 38 overlap each other via the conductive sheet 61. The positive electrode 36 and the negative electrode 38 have, for example, a rectangular shape when viewed from the thickness direction of the conductive sheet 61. Between the two positive electrodes 36 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction, an uncoated region in which the surface 61a of the conductive sheet 61 is exposed is provided. An uncoated region in which the surface 61b of the conductive sheet 61 is exposed is provided between the two negative electrodes 38 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction. The surface 61 a is also exposed on both sides of the positive electrode 36 in the short direction of the conductive sheet 61 (hereinafter simply referred to as “short direction”). The surface 61b is also exposed on both sides of the negative electrode 38 in the lateral direction.

  The electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 includes a supply mechanism 110, a cutting mechanism 120, a transport mechanism 130, a detection unit 140, a detection unit 150, and a controller 160 (control unit).

  The supply mechanism 110 supplies the electrode base material 60 and conveys the electrode base material 60 in the longitudinal direction of the electrode base material 60 (conductive sheet 61). The supply mechanism 110 includes a supply roll 111, a pair of nip rolls 112, and rolls 114 to 117. The supply roll 111 continuously feeds the electrode base material 60 by rotation. The pair of nip rolls 112 pulls the electrode base material 60 by rotating while sandwiching the electrode base material 60 fed from the supply roll 111. Thereby, the supply roll 111 and the pair of nip rolls 112 convey the electrode base material 60 in the longitudinal direction. In the present embodiment, between the roll 117 and the nip roll 112, the electrode base material 60 is conveyed so that the surface 61a faces upward.

  The rolls 114 to 117 are free rolls. The electrode base material 60 is laid across the rolls 114 to 117 in order. That is, the rolls 114 to 117 define the transport path of the electrode base material 60. The roll 116 is configured to be movable up and down by a drive mechanism (not shown). The roll 116 is also referred to as a dancer roll. An accumulator mechanism 113 is configured by the rolls 115 to 117. The accumulation mechanism 113 is a mechanism for intermittently carrying out the electrode base material 60. The accumulation mechanism 113 changes the length of the conveyance path from the roll 115 to the roll 117 by moving the roll 116 up and down in a state where the electrode base material 60 is continuously fed from the supply roll 111. For example, the roll 116 is moved up and down according to the tension of the electrode base material 60. Thereby, the electrode base material 60 is intermittently carried out from the roll 117 while maintaining the tension of the electrode base material 60. The supply roll 111 may have a brake mechanism, and tension may be applied to the electrode base material 60 by pulling the electrode base material 60 by the brake mechanism.

  The cutting mechanism 120 forms the separated bipolar electrode 32 by cutting the electrode base material 60 in a direction crossing the longitudinal direction (in this embodiment, the short direction). The cutting mechanism 120 includes a lower blade 121, an upper blade 122, and a drive mechanism 123. The lower blade 121 is a fixed blade, and is disposed on the lower side of the electrode base material 60. The upper blade 122 is a movable blade, and is configured to be movable up and down by a drive mechanism 123. The lower blade 121 and the upper blade 122 extend in the short direction. The upper blade 122 may be inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the lower blade 121. That is, the upper blade 122 is inclined so as to contact the lower blade 121 in order from one end to the other end in the width direction of the upper blade 122. This inclination angle is also referred to as a shear angle. The electrode base material 60 is cut by sandwiching the electrode base material 60 between the lower blade 121 and the upper blade 122. The lower blade 121 and the upper blade 122 are also called shear blades because they cut using shearing force. The drive mechanism 123 is an actuator such as a solenoid and a cylinder, for example. The drive mechanism 123 moves the upper blade 122 up and down by a control signal from the controller 160.

  The transport mechanism 130 transports the separated bipolar electrode 32. The transport mechanism 130 is, for example, a belt conveyor. The transport mechanism 130 receives the bipolar electrode 32 and transports the bipolar electrode 32 to the next process.

  The detection unit 140 is a sensor that detects edges in the longitudinal direction (conveyance direction) of the plurality of active material layers in the electrode base material 60. In the present embodiment, the detection unit 140 detects the edge of the positive electrode 36. The detection unit 140 detects the leading edge 36a located downstream in the transport direction from the edges of the positive electrode 36. The detection unit 140 is provided upstream of the cutting mechanism 120 in the transport direction and is disposed above the electrode base material 60. In the present embodiment, the detection unit 140 is provided between the roll 117 and the pair of nip rolls 112.

  The detection unit 140 irradiates the electrode base material 60 with light, and detects the amount of reflected light (reflected light amount) reflected by the electrode base material 60. For example, the detection unit 140 irradiates light near the center of the electrode base material 60 in the short direction. Since the surface 61a is covered with the positive electrode 36 in the coated region, the amount of reflected light is small, and in the uncoated region, the surface 61a is exposed, so the amount of reflected light is large. For this reason, the detection unit 140 detects the leading edge 36a based on the difference in the amount of reflected light. For example, the detection unit 140 outputs an edge detection signal indicating the detection of the leading edge 36a to the controller 160.

  The detection unit 150 detects the transport amount of the electrode base material 60 along the transport direction. In the present embodiment, the detection unit 150 is a rotary encoder. The detection unit 150 includes a roll 151 that can rotate around the short direction. The roll 151 is provided between the roll 117 and the pair of nip rolls 112. In the present embodiment, the roll 151 is provided between the roll 117 and the detection unit 140. The roll 151 is arranged so that the outer peripheral surface of the roll 151 is in contact with the surface 61 a of the electrode base material 60. Specifically, the outer peripheral surface of the roll 151 is in contact with one of a pair of uncoated regions provided so as to sandwich the positive electrode 36 in the short direction. Thereby, the roll 151 rotates as the electrode base material 60 is transported in the transport direction. The detection unit 150 generates a pulse in accordance with the rotation of the roll 151 and outputs a pulse signal including a plurality of pulses to the controller 160.

  The controller 160 controls the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100. The controller 160 is a computer including a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) and a ROM (Read Only Memory), and an input / output interface. Various programs and data are stored in the ROM. The controller 160 controls the timing at which the cutting mechanism 120 cuts the electrode base material 60 according to the edge detection signal. The controller 160 recognizes the transport amount of the electrode base material 60 based on the pulse signal. Details of processing executed by the controller 160 will be described later.

  Next, a bipolar electrode manufacturing method (electrode manufacturing method) will be described with reference to FIGS. 4-6 is a top view which shows a part of electrode manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 4 to 6, illustration of the nip roll 112 and the roll 151 is omitted for convenience of explanation. The bipolar electrode 32 can be manufactured using the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 as follows.

(Preparation process)
First, the electrode base material 60 is prepared. For example, a plurality of positive electrodes 36 are intermittently applied in the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 a of the conductive sheet 61. Similarly, a plurality of negative electrodes 38 are applied intermittently in the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 b of the conductive sheet 61. The electrode base material 60 obtained in this way is wound around, for example, the supply roll 111. A positive electrode 36 is provided on the surface 61 a of the conductive sheet 61, and a negative electrode 38 is provided on the surface 61 b of the conductive sheet 61. The size of the negative electrode 38 in the longitudinal direction is larger than the size of the positive electrode 36 in the longitudinal direction. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the positive electrode 36 and the negative electrode 38 are not formed at the front end portion 60 a and the rear end portion 60 b in the longitudinal direction of the electrode base material 60 supplied from the supply roll 111. In the preparation process, the operator sets the number of bipolar electrodes 32 to be manufactured in the controller 160.

(Conveying process)
Subsequently, the electrode base material 60 is supplied by the supply mechanism 110 and conveyed in the longitudinal direction. For example, the electrode base material 60 supplied from the supply roll 111 is sandwiched between the pair of nip rolls 112. Then, the pair of nip rolls 112 rotate while sandwiching the electrode base material 60, whereby the electrode base material 60 is conveyed. Between the roll 117 and the nip roll 112, the electrode base material 60 is conveyed so that the surface 61a faces upward.

(Detection process)
Subsequently, when the front edge 36a of the positive electrode 36 passes below the detection unit 140 (detection position Pd) while the electrode base material 60 is conveyed in the longitudinal direction, the detection unit 140 causes the front edge 36a of the positive electrode 36 to be moved. Detected. As a result, the detection unit 140 outputs an edge detection signal to the controller 160. The detection unit 140 outputs an edge detection signal to the controller 160 every time the front edge 36a is detected.

(Cutting process)
Subsequently, the controller 160 controls the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60 in response to the detection unit 140 detecting the leading edge 36a. As shown in FIG. 4, when the detection unit 140 first detects the leading edge 36a, the leading edge 32a of the bipolar electrode 32 (electrode plate 34) including the positive electrode 36 having the detected leading edge 36a is detected. In order to form, the controller 160 determines whether or not the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D1 in the transport direction from the time (position) when the front edge 36a is detected by the detection unit 140. The distance D1 is preset in the controller 160. The distance D1 is shorter than the distance D0 along the conveyance direction between the detection position Pd of the detection unit 140 and the cutting position Pc of the cutting mechanism 120. The difference between the distance D0 and the distance D1 is equal to the distance between the front edge 32a and the front edge 36a of the bipolar electrode 32. When the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D1 in the transport direction, the controller 160 causes the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60. Thereby, the front edge 32a is formed.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5, the positive electrode 36 having the detected front edge 36a is included in response to the detection of the second and subsequent front edges 36a in the same manner as the first front edge 36a. In order to form the front edge 32a of the bipolar electrode 32 (electrode plate 34), the controller 160 determines whether the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D1 in the transport direction from the time when the front edge 36a is detected by the detection unit 140. Determine whether or not. When the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D1 in the transport direction, the controller 160 causes the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60. Thereby, the front edge 32a is formed. By forming the leading edge 32a, the trailing edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the leading edge 36a detected immediately before is formed, and the previous bipolar electrode 32 is singulated. The The separated bipolar electrode 32 is delivered to the transport mechanism 130.

  The controller 160 controls the supply mechanism 110 to stop the conveyance of the electrode base material 60 supplied to the cutting mechanism 120 relative to the cutting mechanism 120, so that the electrode base material 60 in the stopped state is stopped. Is cut by the cutting mechanism 120.

(Stop process)
Subsequently, the controller 160 stops the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 in response to the stop condition being satisfied. For example, the controller 160 stops the supply and conveyance of the electrode base material 60 by the supply mechanism 110. An example of the stop condition is that the detection unit 140 did not detect the leading edge 36a while the electrode base material 60 was transported a predetermined distance Dth (predetermined distance) along the longitudinal direction. As shown in FIG. 6, the controller 160 detects that the detection unit 140 did not detect the front edge 36a during a predetermined distance Dth along the longitudinal direction from the position where the detection unit 140 detected the front edge 36a. Accordingly, the supply mechanism 110 stops the supply and conveyance of the electrode base material 60. Specifically, the controller 160 stops the operation of the supply roll 111 and the pair of nip rolls 112. That is, if the next front edge 36a is not detected while the electrode base material 60 is conveyed by the distance Dth after the front edge 36a is detected, the controller 160 determines that the supplied electrode base material 60 is It is determined that the rear end portion 60b of the electrode base material 60 has been reached, and the operation of the supply mechanism 110 is stopped.

  The distance Dth is set in the controller 160 in advance. The distance Dth is set in consideration of the error of the pitch Dp and is larger than the pitch Dp. The distance Dth is set to a value obtained by adding about 5 mm to the pitch Dp, for example. The controller 160 may cause the supply mechanism 110 to stop supplying the electrode base material 60 after performing the cutting corresponding to the detected leading edge 36a. For example, the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 is further transported in the transport direction by the length L of the bipolar electrode 32 from the time (position) when the front edge 32a is formed according to the last detected front edge 36a. If it determines, the cutting | disconnection mechanism 120 will make the electrode base material 60 cut | disconnect. Thereby, the trailing edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the leading edge 36a detected last is formed. The length L is a length from the front edge 32a to the rear edge 32b, and is substantially equal to the pitch Dp. The length L is preset in the controller 160.

  Other stop conditions include that the number of separated bipolar electrodes 32 has reached the manufacturing number, and that the operator has stopped the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100. In these cases, the controller 160 stops the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 (supply mechanism 110) even if the cutting corresponding to the detected leading edge 36a has not been performed.

  In the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 and the method for manufacturing the bipolar electrode 32 described above, the plurality of positive electrodes 36 are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 a of the conductive sheet 61. The plurality of negative electrodes 38 are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the surface 61 b of the conductive sheet 61, and are provided at positions corresponding to the plurality of positive electrodes 36. Then, the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 (supply mechanism 110) is stopped in response to the fact that the front edge 36a of the positive electrode 36 is not detected while the electrode base material 60 is conveyed by a distance Dth along the longitudinal direction. The For example, when the rear end portion 60b of the electrode base material 60 is reached, the front edge 36a of the positive electrode 36 is not detected, and the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 is stopped. For this reason, even before the preset number of bipolar electrodes 32 are manufactured, the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 (supply mechanism 110) is stopped, so that the electrode base material 60 is not continuously supplied. . This eliminates the need for the operator to accurately set the number of bipolar electrodes 32 to be manufactured. As a result, failure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 can be avoided without complicating the setting work.

  The controller 160 controls the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60 in response to the detection unit 140 detecting the leading edge 36a. For this reason, the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the detected leading edge 36a can be manufactured.

  If the leading edge 36a is not detected while the electrode base material 60 is being transported by the distance Dth larger than the pitch Dp between the neighboring positive electrodes 36, the positive electrode 36 having the leading edge 36a detected last time. It can be considered that the positive electrode 36 does not exist upstream of. For this reason, the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 (supply mechanism 110) is stopped in response to the fact that the leading edge 36a is not detected while the electrode base material 60 is conveyed by the distance Dth. Thereby, the operation | movement of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 (supply mechanism 110) can be stopped with a sufficient precision.

  The positive electrode 36 may be formed with reference to the front edge 36a located downstream in the transport direction. Since the size of the positive electrode 36 may include manufacturing tolerances, the distance between the trailing edges 36b of two positive electrodes 36 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction may be different from the pitch Dp and may be larger than the distance Dth. obtain. Therefore, when the detection unit 140 detects the trailing edge 36b, the trailing edge 36b is not detected while the electrode base material 60 is conveyed by the distance Dth despite the presence of the subsequent positive electrode 36, and the electrode The manufacturing apparatus 100 may be stopped. On the other hand, the interval between the front edges 36a of the two positive electrodes 36 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction is substantially equal to the pitch Dp. For this reason, when the detection part 140 detects the front edge 36a used as a reference in the formation process of the positive electrode 36, and the subsequent positive electrode 36 exists, the electrode base material 60 is transported by the distance Dth. There is a high possibility that the leading edge 36a is detected. As a result, the detection accuracy of the positive electrode 36 can be improved.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described in detail, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment.

  For example, the cutting mechanism 120 may cut the electrode base material 60 using a high-energy beam such as a laser beam, an electron beam, or a focused ion beam, or mechanically cut the electrode base material 60 using a rotary die cutter or the like. May be cut off.

  The detection unit 140 may be a color sensor or a height sensor. The color sensor detects the leading edge 36 a based on the color difference between the positive electrode 36 and the conductive sheet 61. The height sensor detects the leading edge 36 a based on the difference between the distance from the height sensor to the surface 61 a of the conductive sheet 61 and the distance from the height sensor to the upper surface of the positive electrode 36.

  The detection unit 140 may detect the trailing edge 36b of the positive electrode 36. Further, the electrode base material 60 may be transported between the roll 117 and the nip roll 112 so that the surface 61b faces upward. In this case, the detection unit 140 detects the edge of the negative electrode 38. The detection unit 140 may detect the leading edge 38a located downstream in the transport direction among the edges of the negative electrode 38, or may detect the trailing edge 38b located upstream in the transport direction.

  Moreover, the detection part 150 should just be able to detect the conveyance amount of the electrode base material 60. FIG. The detection unit 150 may detect the conveyance speed and the conveyance time of the electrode base material 60 and calculate the conveyance amount from the conveyance speed and the conveyance time.

  Further, the controller 160 may stop the entire electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 or may stop a part including the supply mechanism 110 in response to the stop condition being satisfied.

  The electrode manufacturing apparatus 100 may manufacture a positive electrode side termination electrode or a negative electrode side termination electrode instead of the bipolar electrode 32. That is, instead of the electrode base material 60, an electrode base material in which a plurality of positive electrodes 36 are intermittently arranged at a predetermined pitch Dp along the longitudinal direction on the surface 61a of the conductive sheet 61 may be used. On the surface 61b of the conductive sheet 61, an electrode base material in which a plurality of negative electrodes 38 are intermittently arranged at a predetermined pitch Dn along the longitudinal direction may be used.

  Further, the positive electrode 36 and the negative electrode 38 may be divided into a plurality of regions in the longitudinal direction. In this case, the controller 160 ignores the edge detection signal received after receiving the edge detection signal from the detection unit 140 until the electrode base material 60 is transported by a predetermined distance. The predetermined distance is set to a design value of the length from the front edge 36a to the rear edge 36b of the positive electrode 36, for example. Thereby, the erroneous detection of the front edge 36a can be suppressed.

  In the above embodiment, each time the front edge 36a is detected, the front edge 32a of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the detected front edge 36a is formed. However, the cutting operation of the cutting mechanism 120 is as follows. It is not limited to this. For example, each time the leading edge 36a is detected, the trailing edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the detected leading edge 36a may be formed.

  In this case, when the detection unit 140 first detects the front edge 36a, the front edge 32a and the rear edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 (electrode plate 34) including the positive electrode 36 having the detected front edge 36a are formed. There is a need to. Therefore, similarly to the above embodiment, in order to form the front edge 32a of the bipolar electrode 32 (electrode plate 34), the controller 160 starts from the point in time when the front edge 36a is detected by the detection unit 140. It is determined whether or not is transported by a distance D1 in the transport direction. When the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D1 in the transport direction, the controller 160 causes the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60. Thereby, the front edge 32a is formed.

  Subsequently, in order to form the rear edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 (electrode plate 34), the controller 160 starts from the time when the front edge 36a is detected by the detection unit 140, and the electrode base material 60 is moved by a distance D2 in the transport direction. It is determined whether or not it has been transported. The distance D2 is the sum of the distance D1 and the length L. In other words, the controller 160 determines whether or not the electrode base material 60 is further transported by the length L in the transport direction from the time when the electrode base material 60 is cut. If the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D2 in the transport direction, the controller 160 causes the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60. Thereby, the rear edge 32b is formed and the bipolar electrode 32 is separated into pieces. The separated bipolar electrode 32 is delivered to the transport mechanism 130.

  In the second and subsequent bipolar electrodes 32, when the trailing edge 32b of the previous bipolar electrode 32 is formed, the leading edge 32a of the bipolar electrode 32 is formed, so the second and subsequent leading edges 36a are detected. Accordingly, the trailing edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the detected leading edge 36a may be formed. Therefore, the controller 160 determines whether or not the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D2 in the transport direction from the time when the front edge 36a is detected by the detection unit 140. If the controller 160 determines that the electrode base material 60 has been transported by the distance D2 in the transport direction, the controller 160 causes the cutting mechanism 120 to cut the electrode base material 60.

  Each time the leading edge 36a is detected, the leading edge 32a and the trailing edge 32b of the bipolar electrode 32 including the positive electrode 36 having the detected leading edge 36a may be formed. In this case, the front edge 32a of the upstream bipolar electrode 32 of the two bipolar electrodes 32 adjacent in the transport direction is cut by cutting the electrode base material 60 at a position different from the rear edge 32b of the downstream bipolar electrode 32. It is formed.

  32 ... Bipolar electrode, 32a ... Lead edge, 32b ... Rear edge, 34 ... Electrode plate, 34c ... Surface, 34d ... Surface, 36 ... Positive electrode, 36a ... Front edge, 36b ... Rear edge, 38 ... Negative electrode, 38a ... Front edge , 38b ... trailing edge, 60 ... electrode base material, 61 ... conductive sheet, 61a ... surface (first surface), 61b ... surface (second surface), 100 ... electrode manufacturing apparatus, 110 ... supply mechanism, 120 ... cutting Mechanism 140 ... detection unit 150 ... detection unit 160 ... controller (control unit).

Claims (6)

An electrode manufacturing apparatus,
An electrode base material having a strip-shaped conductive sheet and a plurality of active material layers arranged intermittently along the longitudinal direction of the conductive sheet on the conductive sheet is supplied, and A supply mechanism for conveying the electrode base material;
A detection unit for detecting an edge in the longitudinal direction of each of the plurality of active material layers in the electrode base material;
A cutting mechanism for forming an electrode by cutting the electrode base material in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction;
A control unit for controlling the operation of the electrode manufacturing apparatus;
With
The control unit supplies the electrode base material to the supply mechanism in response to the detection unit not detecting the edge while the electrode base material is transported a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction. Electrode manufacturing equipment to stop.   The electrode manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the cutting mechanism to cut the electrode base material in response to the detection of the edge by the detection unit.   3. The electrode manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit detects an edge located downstream in the transport direction among edges of each of the plurality of active material layers. The plurality of active material layers are arranged at a predetermined pitch along the longitudinal direction,
The electrode manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined distance is greater than the pitch. The conductive sheet has a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface,
The plurality of active material layers include a plurality of positive electrode active material layers and a plurality of negative electrode active material layers,
The plurality of positive electrode active material layers are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the first surface,
The plurality of negative electrode active material layers are intermittently arranged along the longitudinal direction on the second surface, and are provided at positions corresponding to the plurality of positive electrode active material layers. The electrode manufacturing apparatus according to claim 4. An electrode manufacturing method using an electrode manufacturing apparatus,
An electrode base material having a strip-shaped conductive sheet and a plurality of active material layers arranged intermittently along the longitudinal direction of the conductive sheet on the conductive sheet is supplied, and Conveying the electrode base material;
Forming an electrode by cutting the electrode base material in a direction crossing the longitudinal direction in response to detection of an edge in the longitudinal direction of each of the plurality of active material layers in the electrode base material When,
And a step of stopping the supply of the electrode base material when the edge is not detected while the electrode base material is conveyed at a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction.

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