JPH0670950B2 - Impregnation device for electrolytic capacitor element - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an impregnating device for electrolytic capacitor elements, and more particularly to a vacuum housing and a bath of electrolytic solution that are relatively movable to facilitate impregnation of capacitor elements. And a method for supplying an electrolytic solution to the impregnation device.

(B) Prior Art In the manufacturing process of an electrolytic capacitor, there is a process for impregnating the capacitor element with an electrolytic solution. An apparatus for performing such a process is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-62-282429.
As shown in the issue, various types have been developed in the past.

By the way, in order to surely impregnate the electrolytic solution, it is necessary to impregnate the capacitor element with the electrolytic solution in a vacuum (negative pressure) atmosphere. Due to a structural problem with the liquid tank containing the liquid, the capacitor element is housed in the vacuum housing and the inside is evacuated, and then the electrolytic solution is put in the liquid tank, or the vacuum housing is evacuated. The electrolyte had to be supplied on the way.

However, in such a device, impregnation of the electrolytic solution starts before the air inside the capacitor element is completely degassed, or the electrolytic solution rapidly flows into the vacuumed liquid tank of the vacuum housing. In addition, the air in the electrolytic solution rapidly expands when it enters the liquid tank due to the action of vacuum, so that the electrolytic solution in the liquid tank is disturbed as if it is boiling. For this reason, deaeration of air in the capacitor element is hindered, which causes a smooth impregnation of the electrolytic solution.

(C) Problem to be Solved by the Invention The problem to be solved by the present invention is to make the liquid tank relatively movable with respect to the vacuum housing in the impregnating device for electrolytic capacitor elements, and to By appropriately controlling the liquid level of the electrolytic solution in the liquid tank, it is possible to always supply a constant amount of the electrolytic solution into the liquid tank and to simplify the structure.

(D) Means for Solving the Problems The present invention has a vacuum housing having a plurality of parts, at least one of which is movable, and the inside of which is evacuated by a vacuum device; A liquid tank adapted to contain an electrolytic solution therein, the liquid tank being movable up and down with respect to the vacuum housing, and the capacitor housed in the vacuum housing when the liquid tank is raised. In an impregnation device for immersing an element in an electrolytic solution in the liquid tank in a vacuum atmosphere, an electrolytic solution supply device including a main tank and an auxiliary tank to which the electrolytic solution in the main tank is supplied is provided. Connected to the tank via the on-off valve,
After the impregnation is completed, the liquid level of the electrolytic solution in the auxiliary tank is lowered to the lower limit position. It is arranged to keep the liquid tank as high as possible so that it can flow through the on-off valve.

(E) Operation In the above-mentioned configuration, while the two parts of the vacuum housing are separated from each other, a plurality of capacitor elements are supplied while being held by the tape, and then the two parts approach each other to separate the inside of the vacuum housing from the outside. . On the other hand, the liquid tank is lowered to the lower limit position while the inside of the vacuum housing is kept at the atmospheric pressure, and in that state, the electrolytic solution is supplied to the liquid tank. After that, the inside of the vacuum housing is evacuated, and the air inside the capacitor element is degassed. After that, the liquid tank is raised and the capacitor element is immersed in the electrolytic solution for impregnation.

After that, when the liquid tank is lowered to the lower limit position, the on-off valve is opened and the electrolytic solution in the auxiliary tank is
Only the amount used once is supplied to the liquid tank.

(F) Example An example of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an impregnating apparatus 1 and an electrolytic solution supplying apparatus 6 therefor according to this embodiment. 2 and 3
In the figure, the impregnating device 1 includes a vacuum housing 2, a liquid tank 3 housed in the vacuum housing 2, and a drive device 4 for vertically moving the liquid tank 3 relative to the vacuum housing 2.

The vacuum housing 2 moves horizontally on a fixed part 21 mounted on a bracket 12 fixed on the support plate 11 and on a guide 13 on the support plate 11 adjacent to the fixed part 21. And a movable part 22 which is supported and guided as much as possible. The parts 21 and 22 define a rectangular vacuum chamber c which is long in the left and right, as is apparent from FIG. The movable part 22 is movable in the horizontal direction with respect to the fixed part 21 by a known means such as a cylinder (not shown). An annular groove is formed on the end surface 25 of the fixed portion 21 on the movable portion side,
The seal member 26 is mounted therein. An exhaust port 27 is formed on the upper wall of the fixed portion 21, and a pair of guide tubes 28 are fixed on the lower wall. The fixed part 21 and the movable part 22 of the vacuum housing 2 are elongated in the extending direction of the tape t holding the capacitor element e as shown in FIG. 2, and are held by the tape t in the vacuum chamber c. It can accommodate a plurality of capacitor elements. The tape t is intermittently moved in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 2 at intervals of the pitch p.

As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid tank 3 in which the electrolytic solution is contained extends in substantially the entire length in the vacuum housing and has a cross-sectional shape as shown in FIG. The upper part of this liquid tank 3 is open over the entire length. The liquid tank 3 is fixed to the upper end of a support tube 31 that is vertically movably inserted into each guide tube 28, and is held in the vacuum chamber defined by the vacuum housing 2 by the support tube 31. The inside 33 of the support tube 31 is the inside 32 of the liquid tank 3.
It is in communication with the inside of the liquid tank 3 through the supporting tube 32.
The electrolyte can be supplied to. Support tube
The reference numeral 31 sufficiently projects downward from the lower end of the guide tube 28.

The drive device 4 includes a rotating shaft 42 rotatably supported below the supporting plate 11 by a pair of brackets 41 so as to be adjacent to the supporting tubes, and a pair of rotating shafts 42 fixed to the supporting shafts 31 adjacent to the supporting tubes 31. Of the eccentric disc cam 43, a pulse motor 45 that is connected to the rotary shaft 42 via a gear device 44, and drives the rotary shaft, and is rotatably attached to each support tube 31 via an attachment member 46. And a cam follower 47 that comes into contact with the outer periphery of the disc cam 43. Reference numeral 29 is a seal member that seals between the guide tube and the support tube.

In the drive unit 4, when the rotary shaft 42 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 3 to rotate the disc cam 43 in the same direction, the cam follower 47 moves up and down by the action of the eccentric cam.
Thereby, the liquid tank 3 is moved up and down in the vacuum chamber c through the support tube 31.

In addition, 5 is a vacuum device of the vacuum chamber c,
And the exhaust port 27 of the vacuum housing 2 via the open / close valve 52.
And a vacuum pump 54 connected to the dust remover 53.

The electrolyte solution supply device 6 includes an electrolyte solution supply source 7 including a main tank 71 and a pump 72, an auxiliary tank 78 mounted on the support plate 11 at the same level as the vacuum housing 2, and a supply source 7 and an auxiliary device. It has a supply circuit 9 connecting the tank 8 and the support tube 31.

The main tank 71 is provided with a partition wall 73 extending upward from the bottom,
A suction pipe connected to the pump 72 at the bottom on one side
74 is connected. The return pipe 75 is connected to the main tank 71. Further, the electrolytic solution 1 is sent to the suction pipe 74 side through the partition wall 73, the bubbles in the electrolytic solution 1 are discharged to the outside as much as possible, and the electrolytic solution 1 without bubbles is sucked from the suction pipe.

The auxiliary tank 8 is provided with a partition wall 81 extending upward. The bottom of one of the partition walls 81 (right side in FIG. 1) is connected to the lower end of the support tube 31 via a conduit 91 of the supply circuit 9 and an opening / closing valve 92, and the auxiliary tank 8 is provided in the support tube 31.
The electrolyte inside can be supplied. The other bottom of the partition wall 81 is connected to a pump 72 via a conduit 93 so that the electrolytic solution 1 in the main tank 71 can be supplied to the bottom of the auxiliary tank 8. The auxiliary tank 8 is provided with a discharge pipe 82, and this discharge pipe is connected to the return pipe 75 of the main tank 71 via a conduit 95. The discharge pipe 82 is adapted to keep the level of the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 1 in the auxiliary tank 8 constant as described below. That is, the level h from the upper surface of the support plate 11 to the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 1 in the auxiliary tank 8
Similarly, ₁ is the level h ₂ from the upper surface of the support plate 11 to the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 1 in the liquid tank 3 at the lowest position, and when the supply of a predetermined amount of electrolytic solution into the liquid tank is completed. Therefore, it is decided that they are almost equal. 96 is an overflow conduit,
97 is a return conduit. This auxiliary tank 8 also has a structure in which bubbles are not mixed in the electrolytic solution due to the presence of the partition wall and the connecting position of the conduit.

In the above structure, when the movable part 22 of the vacuum housing 2 is separated from the fixed part, the tape t is intermittently transferred by 1 pitch p, and the plurality of capacitor elements e to be impregnated are sent to the position of the vacuum chamber c. . At this time, the liquid tank 3 is lowered to the lowest position by the driving device 4.
While the tape t is being intermittently fed, the on-off valve 92 is opened and the electrolytic solution 1 in the auxiliary tank 8 is supplied into the inside 32 of the liquid tank 3 through the conduit 91 and the support pipe 31. Since the liquid level h ₂ is lower than the liquid level h ₁ by the amount used in the previous impregnation operation, the supply of the electrolytic solution 1 is controlled by the level difference.
Supplied by opening 92 for a period of time. In this way, the difference between the liquid level h ₁ of the electrolyte in the auxiliary tank and the liquid level h ₂ of the electrolyte in the liquid tank (supply) while both the auxiliary tank side and the liquid tank side are under atmospheric pressure. In the previous case, since the liquid level h ₂ was lower than h ₁ by the amount of the electrolyte used for the last impregnation work, the electrolyte flowed slowly, and air bubbles entered the electrolyte. It will not be mixed.

Next, the movable part 22 moves toward the fixed part and abuts against each other to seal the vacuum chamber c from the outside and press and fix the part of the tape t not holding the capacitor element. After that, the vacuum chamber 5 is evacuated by the vacuum device 5. When the vacuum chamber c reaches a predetermined degree of vacuum, the drive unit 4 operates to rotate the rotary shaft 42, and gradually the liquid tank is gradually immersed in the electrolytic solution 1 as shown in FIG. To raise. Then, the capacitor element e supported by the tape t is immersed in the electrolytic solution l in the liquid tank 3. When the vacuum chamber c is evacuated, the capacitor element is not rapidly immersed in the electrolytic solution, but is gradually immersed therein. Therefore, the bubbles existing in the electrolytic solution are expanded by the vacuuming and the electrolytic solution of the electrolytic solution expands. Even if it flows out to the outside, the amount of air newly supplied into the liquid tank is limited, so that the outflow of bubbles ends when the immersion of the capacitor element is started. Therefore, smooth impregnation is performed.

When the impregnation is completed, the liquid tank 3 is lowered to the lowest position by the driving device 4, then atmospheric pressure is introduced into the vacuum chamber c, and the movable portion 22 of the vacuum housing 2 separates from the fixed portion 21. Then, the tape t is moved by one pitch p, and the next capacitor element is supplied. The same is performed thereafter. The above operation is shown in a table as shown in FIG.

(G) Effects According to the present invention, the following effects can be achieved.

Since the electrolytic solution is supplied to the liquid tank under atmospheric pressure, the supply is performed gently and the lead wire is not contaminated with the electrolytic solution.

For the same reason as above, the air in the capacitor element can be extracted to smoothly impregnate the electrolytic solution.

Maintenance is easy because there are few valves and the piping system is clean.

Since the lead wire is clean, cleaning the capacitor after assembly is not necessary.

It is possible to reliably supply the amount of the electrolytic solution used in one impregnation with a simple structure.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire impregnating apparatus and electrolytic solution supply apparatus of the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the impregnating apparatus, and is a view as seen along the line II--II in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the impregnating device, FIG. 4 is a view showing the holding state of the capacitor element by the tape, and FIG. 5 is a timing diagram of the operation. 1: Impregnation device, 2: Vacuum housing 3: Liquid tank, 4: Drive device 5: Exhaust device, 6: Electrolyte solution supply device 7: Supply source, 8: Auxiliary tank

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim: What is claimed is: 1. A vacuum housing, at least one of which has a plurality of movable parts, the interior of which is evacuated by a vacuum device, and an electrolyte solution is contained in and inside the vacuum housing. And a liquid tank that is movable up and down with respect to the vacuum housing,
In the impregnation device in which the capacitor element housed in the vacuum housing is immersed in the electrolytic solution in the liquid tank in a vacuum atmosphere when the liquid tank is raised, the main tank and the auxiliary solution to which the electrolytic solution in the main tank is supplied An electrolytic solution supply device provided with a tank is provided, and the auxiliary tank and the liquid tank are connected via an on-off valve,
After the impregnation is completed, the liquid level of the electrolytic solution in the auxiliary tank is lowered to the lower limit position. An impregnating apparatus for electrolytic capacitor elements, characterized in that the electrolytic tank is kept as high as possible in the liquid tank through the on-off valve.