KR101301138B1 - Laser Welding Device of Electrode Terminals and Welding Process Using the Same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a device for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery module or the welding of the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit, a plurality of batteries so that two or more welding scheduled portion is located in the direction of the counter bar and clamp bar A support member for fixing the cell or the battery modules in a stacked state; A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion; A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And a laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion. It includes, and provides a welding device characterized in that the welding by irradiating a laser on the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the back of the welding portion of the counter bar.

Description

Laser Welding Device of Electrode Terminal and Welding Process Using the Same}

The present invention relates to a laser welding device and a welding method of an electrode terminal, and more particularly, a device for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or the battery module to each other or the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit welding, A support member for positioning the plurality of battery cells or battery modules in a stacked state such that the predetermined portion is positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar; A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion; A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And a laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion. It includes, and the welding apparatus characterized in that the welding by irradiating a laser on the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the back of the welding portion of the counter bar.

The rechargeable battery capable of charging and discharging is a power source for electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and medium and large devices, which are proposed to solve air pollution of conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles using fossil fuels. Is attracting attention.

In general, due to the necessity of a high output large capacity in a medium-large device such as an automobile, a medium-large battery module electrically connecting a plurality of battery cells is used.

Since the middle- or large-sized battery module is preferably manufactured in a small size and weight, a prismatic battery, a pouch-shaped battery, and the like, which can be charged with a high degree of integration and have a small weight to capacity ratio, are mainly used as the battery cells of the middle- or large-sized battery modules. Particularly, a pouch-shaped battery using an aluminum laminate sheet or the like as an exterior member has recently attracted a great deal of attention due to its advantages such as a small weight and a low manufacturing cost.

However, since the external member itself is not excellent in mechanical rigidity, in order to manufacture a battery module having a stable structure, generally, battery cells (unit cells) are attached to a pack case such as a cartridge to manufacture a battery module . However, since a mounting space is limited in a device or a vehicle in which a middle- or large-sized battery module is mounted, when the size of the battery module is increased due to the use of a pack case such as a cartridge, a problem of low space utilization is caused. Further, the low mechanical rigidity of the battery cell is caused by the repeated expansion and contraction of the battery cell during charging and discharging, resulting in a case where the heat-welded portion is separated.

Therefore, in order to solve this problem, the present applicant is a Korean Patent No. 0870457, a battery module including a plate-shaped battery cells, the electrode terminals are formed on the top and bottom, respectively, the electrode terminals are interconnected in series And a pair of high-strength cell covers that are bent to connect the electrode terminals to form two or more battery cells forming a stacked structure and to cover the entire outer surface of the battery cell stack except for the electrode terminal portion. The configured battery module has been presented.

According to the patent, in the process of assembling the battery module, the electrode terminals are coupled to each other by ultrasonic welding while the two pouch-type battery cells are arranged in series in the longitudinal direction such that the electrode terminals thereof are continuously adjacent to each other. Then, two battery cells combined with electrode terminals are folded so as to face each other to form a battery cell stack, and then a unit cover is manufactured to manufacture a unit battery module, and electrode terminals are connected to produce a medium-large battery module.

As described above, however, the process of connecting the electrode terminals between the unit battery modules is generally performed by ultrasonic welding, and since the positive electrode terminal and the negative electrode terminal of the battery module are made of different materials, they are mutually welded. When the welding coupling force between the terminals tends to be lowered, the manufactured medium and large battery modules have a problem in that a welding part is separated when an external force such as vibration and shock is applied, causing a short circuit, and a short circuit may occur. It was confirmed.

In addition, since the positions of the respective welding sites formed in the battery module stack structure are adjacent in the process of stacking the battery modules and welding the respective electrode terminals, a precise and robust welding device is required to weld the electrode terminals. That is, a malfunction of the welding device or a welding process by the welding device having a large error movement causes a short circuit of the welding site.

Therefore, there is a high need for a welding apparatus and a welding method for improving safety while improving weldability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-described problems of the prior art and the technical problems required from the past.

Specifically, the object of the present invention is to improve the weldability by laser welding in connecting the electrode terminals of the battery cells or battery modules, and to prevent the occurrence of short in the welding process laser welding device of the electrode terminal to improve the safety And a welding method.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a medium-large battery module having improved safety by connecting battery cells or battery modules by the laser welding device and method.

Laser welding apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object, as a device for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery module to each other or the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit welding,

A support member for positioning the plurality of battery cells or battery modules in a stacked state such that two or more welding scheduled portions are positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;

A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion;

A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And

A laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion;

It includes, and is configured to the structure by welding the laser irradiation on the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the back of the welding portion of the counter bar.

Therefore, the laser welding apparatus according to the present invention can further improve the weldability of the electrode terminals compared to the conventional spot welding or ultrasonic welding, and when manufacturing the battery module by connecting the terminals of the battery cells in series, the positive electrode of the battery cell Even if the material of the terminal and the negative terminal is different, it is possible to prevent the disadvantage that the weldability is reduced, thereby further improving the bonding force of the electrode terminals, it is possible to perform the welding more easily in the correct position.

In addition, as defined above, the welding is performed by irradiating a laser beam to the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the rear surface of the welding portion of the counter bar to effectively weld large electrode terminals. You can weld.

The battery cell may have a plate-like structure having a thin thickness and a relatively wide width and length so as to minimize the overall size when the battery cell is charged for the configuration of the battery module.

For example, a plate-type battery cell having a structure in which an electrode assembly is built in a battery case of a laminate sheet including a resin layer and a metal layer and protruding electrode terminals at both upper and lower ends thereof, specifically, an aluminum laminate sheet It may be made of a structure in which the electrode assembly is built in the pouch type case.

The battery module includes a plate-shaped battery cell having electrode terminals formed at an upper end and a lower end, respectively. For example, electrode terminals are connected in series and the connection portions of the electrode terminals are bent, Two or more battery cells having a structure; And a pair of high-strength cell covers coupled to each other to surround the outer surfaces of the battery cells except the electrode terminal portions. As a specific example of such a battery module, there is a module of the applicant's Korean Patent No. 0870457 as described above, which is incorporated by reference in the context of the present invention.

Preferably, the welding plan portion may be a portion in which two battery cells or battery modules are vertically bent so that adjacent plate-shaped electrode terminals overlap each other in a state where the battery cells or battery modules are sequentially stacked. For example, when connecting their electrode terminals to each other in a stacked battery cell or battery module, the protruding electrode terminals of one battery module A are perpendicular to the direction in which the other battery modules B to be connected thereto are stacked. The electrode terminal of the battery module (B) is bent vertically in the direction of the battery module (A), and the electrode terminals of these battery modules (A, B) overlap the vertically bent portions to form a welding plan portion. It may be made of a structure for performing a post-weld.

In one preferred embodiment, the opening of the clamp bar may be formed in the size of 50% to 90% corresponding to the width of the welding plan portion, and the size of 80% to 100% corresponding to the length of the welding plan portion. If the size of the opening of the clamp bar is too small based on the width and length of the weld scheduled portion, the clamp bar may cover many sides of the weld scheduled portion during welding to reduce the welding effect, and conversely, the size of the clamp bar opening Is too large, it is not preferable because it may be difficult to exert the effect of its mounting. Thus, of course, the size of the opening of the clamp bar may exceed the above range unless this problem is caused.

In another preferred embodiment, the slit is perforated in the counter bar for supporting the rear surface of the welding scheduled portion, by dissipating the welding heat from the rear surface of the welding scheduled portion during laser welding, the heat is excessively concentrated to affect the battery cell It can prevent.

The counter bar and the clamp bar may be formed in a tapered structure, preferably at an end portion, so that the counter bar and the clamp bar can be easily introduced into the rear and front surfaces of the electrode terminals which are to be welded.

On the other hand, in order to prevent shorts occurring during welding, an insulating member may be further mounted between the welding scheduled portions.

For example, the insulating member may have a bar structure having a 'c' shape surrounding the upper and lower portions of the welding plan portion to expose the welding plan portion in the direction of the laser irradiation apparatus. The insulating member having such a structure maintains the vertically bent shape of the welding scheduled portion, and can prevent deformation of the welding scheduled portion by the welding heat.

In addition, it is preferable that the end portion has a tapered structure so that the insulating member can be easily inserted between the welding scheduled portions, similarly to the counter bar and the clamp bar.

Therefore, the insulating member can be safely spaced apart from each other electrically so that no current flows through the welding scheduled portions, and the welding scheduled portions are separated due to malfunction or positional deviation of a part of the welding apparatus such as a supporting member or a moving member during welding. It is possible to prevent the short from occurring in contact with each other.

In one specific example, for welding the counter bar and the clamp bar are introduced from the horizontal (side) direction with respect to the welding scheduled portion to be in close contact with the back and the front of the welding scheduled portion, respectively, and the insulating member is introduced in the counter bar and the clamp bar. Is introduced from the opposite side of the can be formed into a structure that is inserted between the welding scheduled portion.

Preferably, the clamp bar and the counter bar are horizontally moved horizontally and horizontally with respect to the welding target part such that the clamp bar and the counter bar are introduced into the front and rear surfaces of the welding part to be moved horizontally and can be removed after welding. 1 is installed on the movable member, the insulating member may be installed on the second movable member horizontally moving in the horizontal direction.

In the above structure, the first and second moving members may be connected in an LM block-rail structure. Thus, the first and second moving members can move horizontally such that the clamp bar, the counter bar, and the insulating member approach or are spaced apart from the welding scheduled portion.

In addition, the first moving member for moving the clamp bar and the counter bar comprises a first block horizontally moved in the horizontal direction with respect to the welding plan portion, and a second block horizontally moved in the front and rear directions to correct the position error of the welding plan portion. There may be. By these blocks, the connection work can be stably performed by minimizing the position error to the welding scheduled portion.

On the other hand, the support member may be made of a structure that can be moved in the vertical direction to enable the sequential welding by the counter bar and the clamp bar for a plurality of welding scheduled portion. This structure can move the height of the welding plan portion to be welded in the vertical direction corresponding to the height of the counter bar and the clamp bar, and the support member is moved stepwise in the vertical direction corresponding to the spacing of the welding plan portions. It may also be made of a structure.

Preferably, the support member includes a guide (support guide) for supporting at least both sides of the stacked battery cells or battery modules, so that the battery cells or batteries stacked by the left and right movement of the counter bar and the clamp bar during welding. The modules can be fixed in position to maintain an aligned structure.

On the other hand, the laser device may have a structure including an irradiation unit for irradiating a laser beam, and an exhaust unit for sucking the metal fume at the nozzle portion. That is, at the same time as irradiating the laser beam from the irradiation unit, the metal fume is directly sucked from the exhaust unit of the nozzle portion, it is possible to immediately remove the harmful debris, such as aluminum fumes generated during welding.

In the above structure, the laser device may be positioned on both sides of the stacked battery cell units to simultaneously perform welding on one side welding part and the other side welding part. That is, the continuous process is possible at both sides of the welding plan portion, thereby maximizing the welding efficiency.

The present invention also provides a method for electrically connecting the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery modules using the welding device.

Specifically, the method,

(a) mounting two or more battery cells or battery modules on the support member such that the welding plan portion is positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;

(b) inserting insulating members into upper and lower portions of the welding plan portion to be welded;

(c) advancing the counter bar and the clamp bar to closely contact the front and rear surfaces of the welding plan portion;

(d) moving the laser device in a horizontal direction to perform laser welding on the welding scheduled portion; And

(e) repeating steps (b) to (d) by moving the support member upward (or downward);

It includes.

According to the welding method, since the bonding force of the electrode terminal welding portion of the laminated battery cell or the battery module is excellent, and the short generation can be prevented during the welding process, it is preferable for the production of high output large-capacity battery module that requires more structural stability. It can be used to make a continuous process by automation.

Therefore, the present invention also provides a high output large-capacity battery module manufactured by the above method.

In one preferred embodiment, the medium-large battery module is composed of a plurality of battery modules having a structure in which two or more battery cells are coupled by a pair of cell covers, the battery cells between each other and the battery cells in the plate-shaped electrode The terminals may be configured to be electrically connected by laser welding in a state where the terminals are vertically bent and overlapped with each other.

As described above, in the laser welding device according to the present invention, by placing the counter bar, the clamp bar and the insulating member on the electrode terminal welding scheduled portion of the battery module stack, and performing laser welding, the weldability of the weld scheduled portion It is possible to greatly improve and to prevent the occurrence of short during welding, thereby reducing the defective rate of the battery and greatly improving safety. In addition, the electrode terminals of a large area can be welded at once, and the bonding force during welding between dissimilar metals can be improved.

1 to 4 are schematic views of a process of manufacturing a battery module stack;
5 and 6 are front and right side views of FIG. 4;
7 is a schematic view of a laser welding device according to one embodiment of the present invention;
8 is a schematic view of an enlarged structure of the movable member in the laser welding device of FIG.
FIG. 9 is a partially enlarged view in which the counter bar, the clamp bar, and the insulating member of FIG. 1 are introduced into a welding plan portion; FIG.
FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an enlarged structure of the counter bar and the clamp bar of FIG. 9; FIG.
FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of an enlarged structure of an insulating member in the welding apparatus of FIG. 9; FIG.
12 is a schematic view of one exemplary medium-large battery module in which the battery module stack of FIG. 4 is mounted in a battery module case.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited by the scope of the present invention.

1 to 4 schematically show a process of manufacturing a battery module stack.

First, referring to FIG. 1, the pouch-type battery cell 100 has a structure in which two electrode leads 110 and 120 protrude from each other to protrude from an upper end and a lower end of the battery cell body 130. Exterior member 140 is composed of two upper and lower units, both side surfaces 140b and the upper and lower portions 140a which are mutually contacting portions with the electrode assembly (not shown) mounted on the receiving portion formed on the inner surface thereof. , The battery 100 is made by attaching 140c.

The exterior member 140 is made of a laminate structure of a resin layer / metal foil layer / resin layer, and is attached to both sides 140b and upper and lower ends 140a and 140c by contact with each other to heat and pressure to bond the resin layer to each other. In some cases, the adhesive may be attached using an adhesive. Both sides 140b are in direct contact with the same resin layer of the upper and lower exterior members 140, thereby enabling uniform sealing by melting. On the other hand, since the electrode leads 110 and 120 protrude from the upper end 140a and the lower end 140c, the sealing properties are improved in consideration of the thickness of the electrode leads 110 and 120 and the heterogeneity with the material of the exterior member 140. Heat-sealed in the state of interposing the film-like sealing member 160 between the electrode leads 110, 120 so as to be able to.

Next, referring to FIG. 2, two pouch-type battery cells 100a and 100b have one side 121 of the electrode terminals 120 and 121 vertically bent outwardly and the other side 122 inwardly. Bend vertically. In the battery cell stack 100 ′ in which the electrode terminals 120 and 121 are folded to overlap, the electrode terminal portions 120 joined by laser welding are bent in a 'c' shape and face each other. The opposite electrode terminals 121 are vertically bent in the upper and lower directions, respectively. This process may be performed in a reverse process, for example, after stacking the battery cells with the electrode terminals preferentially bent, the corresponding parts may be welded, which is described below with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. The same applies to the same.

3 is a perspective view schematically illustrating a unit battery module. Referring to FIG. 3 together with FIG. 2, a pair of cell covers 200 is mounted outside the overlapped battery cell stack 100 ′ to compensate for weak mechanical characteristics of the battery cell stack 100 ′. Doing. One electrode terminal 120 of the battery cell stack 100 ′ is bent in a 'c' shape while facing each other, and the opposite electrode terminal 121 is an electrode terminal of a battery module stacked on a side surface (not shown). It is bent outward to combine with.

The cell cover 200 is formed of a pair of high-strength metal plate which is coupled to each other to cover the entire outer surface of the battery cell stack 100 ′ except for the electrode terminals 120 and 121. Steps 240 are formed on side surfaces adjacent to the left and right ends of the cell cover 200 to facilitate fixing of the module, and steps 250 are also formed on the top and the bottom thereof. In addition, longitudinal fixing parts 260 are formed at upper and lower ends of the cell cover 200 to facilitate mounting of the module. The outer surface of the cell cover 200 is formed with a plurality of linear protrusions spaced apart from each other in the width direction, the indentation formed in the center is formed with an indentation 233 for mounting the thermistor (not shown).

4 is a perspective view of a structure in which the unit battery modules 300 manufactured in FIG. 3 are stacked ('battery module stack'). Referring to FIG. 4, four unit battery modules 300 form one battery module stack 400 and include eight battery cells 100 as a whole. The electrode terminal vertically bent in the inward direction (FIG. 3: 120) overlaps the electrode terminal of another adjacent battery cell (not shown) and the vertically bent portion to form a welding plan portion 410.

FIG. 5 schematically shows the front view of FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 schematically shows the right side view of FIG. 4. Referring to these drawings, one side of the pair of battery cells 100 in the unit battery module 300 overlaps the electrode terminal vertically bent in the inward direction to form a welding plan portion 410, the opposite side Each of the electrode terminals is vertically bent in an outer direction of the unit battery module 300 to form an electrode terminal protruding from the battery cell 100 of another adjacent unit battery module 300 and a welding plan portion 412. have.

7 schematically shows a laser welding device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the welding apparatus 500 includes a support member 510 for fixing the battery module stack 400 manufactured in FIG. 4 and a rear surface of the welding plan portion 410 in which electrode terminals overlap each other. The counter bar 520, the clamp bar 530 introduced to the front of the welding scheduled portion 410, the first moving member 550 for moving the counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 in the left and right directions, welding In order to prevent the occurrence of short, the insulating member 540 mounted between the welding scheduled portions 410 of the battery module stack 400 and the insulating member 540 introduced between the welding scheduled portions 410 are horizontally oriented. And a second moving member 560 for moving the laser beam and a laser device 570 for irradiating a laser beam to the welding scheduled portion.

The laser device 570 is configured with a structure including an irradiation unit 572 for irradiating a laser beam and an exhaust unit 574 that sucks metal fume from the nozzle portion 573. Therefore, while irradiating a laser beam at the irradiation unit 572, the metal fume is directly sucked from the exhaust unit 574 of the nozzle portion 573, thereby immediately removing harmful debris such as aluminum fume generated during welding. can do.

In addition, the laser device 570 is located on both sides of the stacked battery cell units 400 to simultaneously perform welding work on the one side welding plan portion 410 and the other side welding plan portion (not shown), thereby improving welding efficiency. Can be maximized.

FIG. 8 schematically illustrates an enlarged structure of the movable member in the welding apparatus of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 8 together with FIG. 7, the support member 510 may include a support guide 512 for supporting both sides and a bottom surface of the battery module stack 400, and a height adjusting member for adjusting the height of the guide 512. 514). The support guide 512 fixes the battery module stack 400 and maintains the aligned structure, and the height adjusting member 514 moves the plurality of welding scheduled portions 410 in the vertical direction, and thus, the laser device. Sequential welding of the welding plan portions 410 by 570 is possible.

The first moving member 550 includes a clamp bar 530 such that the clamp bar 530 and the counter bar 520 are introduced into the front and rear surfaces of the welding plan portion 410 to move horizontally and to be removed after welding. ) And the counter bar 520 are horizontally moved in the front-rear direction B to correct the position error of the first block 552 which is horizontally moved in the left-right direction A with respect to the welding plan part 410, and the welding plan part. 2nd block 556, etc. are comprised.

The second moving member 560 moves horizontally in the left and right direction A so that the insulating member 540 can be introduced between the welding scheduled portions 410.

The first moving member 550 and the second moving member 560 are composed of LM block-rail structures 554, 558, and 564, and by this structure, the first moving member 550 and the second moving member 560. ) Is movable in the horizontal direction (A) and the vertical direction (B).

Accordingly, the counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 move from right to left along the first moving member 550, and the insulating member 540 is to be welded 410 along the second moving member 560. After moving from the left side to the right side of the) and introduced into the welding plan portion 410, the welding plan portion 410 is welded by the laser device 570. After welding, the counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 mounted on the first moving member 550 and the insulating member 540 mounted on the second moving member 560 are moved backward and leftward. Move and return to the initial setting position for the next step of welding.

9 is a partial perspective view illustrating a counter bar, a clamp bar, and an insulating member introduced into a welding plan part, and FIG. 10 schematically illustrates an enlarged structure of the counter bar and clamp bar of FIG. 9.

Referring to these drawings, the opening 532 of the clamp bar 530 is approximately 80% of the size corresponding to the width W of the welding plan portion 410 and the length L of the welding plan portion 410. It is formed to a size of approximately 80%, and the laser is irradiated to the front surface of the welding plan portion 410 through this opening to weld.

The counter bar 520 is perforated with a slit 522, so that the welding heat can be radiated from the rear surface of the welding plan portion 410 during laser welding.

The counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 have tapered structures 524 and 534 at end portions thereof, so that the counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 can be easily introduced into the rear and front surfaces of the welding plan portion 410.

FIG. 11 schematically shows an enlarged structure of an insulating member in the welding apparatus of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 11 along with FIG. 9, the insulating member 540 surrounds the upper and lower portions of the welding plan portion 410 to prevent conduction between the welding plan portions 410 and to be exposed in the direction of the laser irradiation apparatus. The end is configured with a tapered structure 544 so that it can be easily inserted between the shaped bar 542 and the weld scheduled portions.

Accordingly, the bar 542 having a 'c' shape prevents deformation of the welding plan portion 410 due to the welding heat while maintaining the vertical bent shape of the welding plan portion 410, and the welding plan portions 410 during welding. ) Can prevent shorts caused by contact with each other.

Meanwhile, the process of laser welding the electrode terminals of the battery module stack 400 using the welding apparatus 500 will be described with reference to FIG. 7 again.

First, the battery module stack 400 is mounted on the support member 510. At this time, the welding plan portion 410 having the bent portion of the electrode terminal protruding in a '-' shape overlaps the counter bar 520. And the battery module stack 400 is positioned in the direction of the clamp bar 530. Thereafter, the insulating member 540 is mounted by horizontally moving between the welding scheduled portions 410 by the first moving member 550. The counter bar 520 and the clamp bar 530 are horizontally moved by the second moving member 560 to closely contact the rear and front surfaces of the welding plan portion 410, and then laser welding is performed. After welding the welding scheduled portion 410 to connect the respective electrode terminals, the counter bar 520, the clamp bar 530, and the insulating member 540 are moved backward, and the support member 512 is upwardly moved. After moving (or down), the laser welding process described above is repeated to perform welding on the other welding scheduled portions sequentially. Such a series of processes can be modified in some order of operation or addition of new processes without departing from the scope of the present invention.

12 illustrates an exemplary structure in which the battery module stack of FIG. 4 is mounted to a battery module case.

Referring to FIG. 12, the medium-large battery module 600 has a structure in which a battery module stack 400 completed by the laser welding process of FIG. 7 is mounted on a module case including an upper case 610 and a lower case 620. Consists of Since the inside of the battery module stack 400 is the same as the structure of FIGS. 1 to 4 described above, the description will be omitted and the external structure of the medium-large battery module 600 will be mainly described.

In the upper case 610 of the medium-large battery module 600, a plurality of coolant inlets 612 are formed on an upper surface thereof for the inflow of the coolant. The lower case 620 has a structure that is coupled to the upper case 610 while surrounding the other end and the upper and lower portions of the battery module stack 400, the electrode of the battery module stack 400 on the front The external input / output terminal 622 connected to the terminal is configured to be located. A mounting coupling part 630 having fastening grooves 632 is formed at the bottom front and bottom of the medium and large battery module 600 so as to mount other battery modules to the outside.

Claims (23)

An apparatus for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery module or the welding of the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit,
A support member for positioning the plurality of battery cells or battery modules in a stacked state such that two or more welding scheduled portions are positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;
A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion;
A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And
A laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion;
And,
The counter bar and the clamp bar are irradiated with a laser on the front surface of the welding plan portion through the opening of the clamp bar while the counter bar is supporting the rear surface of the welding plan portion, and the counter bar and the clamp bar are formed on the rear surface of the mutual overlapping portions of the electrode terminals, Welding device, characterized in that the end is tapered structure so that it can be easily introduced to the front surface. The welding device according to claim 1, wherein the battery cell is a plate-shaped battery cell. The battery module of claim 1, wherein the battery module includes plate-shaped battery cells having electrode terminals formed at upper and lower ends thereof, respectively.
Two or more battery cells in which electrode terminals are interconnected in series and the connecting portions of the electrode terminals are bent to form a stacked structure; And
A pair of cell covers coupled to each other to cover the entire outer surface of the battery cell stack except for the electrode terminal portion;
Welding device, characterized in that the battery module comprising a. The welding device according to claim 1, wherein the welding plan portion is a portion in which two battery cells or battery modules are vertically bent so that adjacent plate-shaped electrode terminals overlap each other in a state of being sequentially stacked. The method of claim 1, wherein the opening of the clamp bar is formed in the size of 50% to 90% corresponding to the width of the welding plan portion, and the size of 80% to 100% corresponding to the length of the welding plan portion. Welding device. The welding device according to claim 1, wherein the counter bar is perforated with slits for dissipating welding heat from the rear surface of the welding plan portion. delete The welding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an insulating member inserted between the welding scheduled portions to prevent shorting during welding. The welding device according to claim 8, wherein the insulating member has a bar structure having a 'c' shape surrounding the upper and lower portions of the welding plan portion to expose the welding plan portion in the direction of the laser irradiation apparatus. The welding device according to claim 8, wherein the insulating member has a tapered structure at an end portion so that the insulating member can be easily inserted between the welding scheduled portions. 10. The method according to claim 8, wherein for welding, the counter bar and the clamp bar are introduced from the horizontal (side) direction with respect to the welding scheduled portion and are in close contact with the back and the front of the welding scheduled portion, respectively, and the insulating member is introduced in the counter bar and the clamp bar. The welding apparatus, characterized in that is introduced from the opposite side of the insertion between the welding scheduled portions. 9. The clamp bar and the counter bar are horizontally horizontal to the welding scheduled part so that the clamp bar and the counter bar can be introduced to the front and rear surfaces of the welding part to be moved horizontally and removed after welding. It is provided on a moving first moving member, the insulating member is installed on the second moving member horizontally moving in the horizontal direction. 13. The welding apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the first and second moving members are connected in an LM block-rail structure. 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the first moving member comprises a first block horizontally moving in the horizontal direction with respect to the welding plan portion, and a second block horizontally moving in the front and rear directions to correct a position error of the welding plan portion. Characterized in that the welding device. The welding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support member is configured to be movable in a vertical direction so as to enable sequential welding by a counter bar and a clamp bar to a plurality of welding scheduled parts. The welding device according to claim 15, wherein the support member includes guides (support guides) for supporting at least both sides of the stacked battery cells or battery modules. The welding device according to claim 1, wherein the laser device has a structure including an irradiation unit for irradiating a laser beam and an exhaust unit for sucking metal fume at the nozzle portion. 18. The welding apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein the laser apparatus is located at both sides of the stacked battery cell units to simultaneously perform welding on one side welding part and the other side welding part. A method for electrically connecting plate-shaped electrode terminals of a battery cell or battery modules using the welding device according to claim 1,
(a) mounting two or more battery cells or battery modules on the support member such that the welding plan portion is positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;
(b) inserting insulating members into upper and lower portions of the welding plan portion to be welded;
(c) advancing the counter bar and the clamp bar to closely contact the front and rear surfaces of the welding plan portion;
(d) performing laser welding on the welding scheduled portion; And
(e) repeating the steps (b) to (d) by moving the support member upwardly (or downwardly);
Welding method comprising a. delete delete An apparatus for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery module or the welding of the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit,
A support member for positioning the plurality of battery cells or battery modules in a stacked state such that two or more welding scheduled portions are positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;
A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion;
A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And
A laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion;
And,
The counter bar is welded by irradiating a laser beam to the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the rear surface of the welding portion, and the counter bar is perforated with a slit for dissipation of welding heat from the rear surface of the welding portion. Welding device, characterized in that. An apparatus for welding the plate-shaped electrode terminals of the battery cell or battery module or the welding of the plate-shaped electrode terminal and the external circuit,
A support member for positioning the plurality of battery cells or battery modules in a stacked state such that two or more welding scheduled portions are positioned in the direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar;
A counter bar introduced into the rear side of the welding scheduled portion;
A clamp bar introduced into the front surface of the welding plan portion and having an opening for laser irradiation; And
A laser device for irradiating a laser to a welding scheduled portion;
And,
While irradiating a laser beam to the front surface of the welding portion through the opening of the clamp bar while supporting the rear surface of the welding portion of the counter bar, the insulation member is inserted between the welding portions to prevent shorting during welding. And a counter bar and a clamp bar are introduced from the horizontal (side) direction with respect to the welding scheduled portion to be in close contact with the rear side and the front surface of the welding scheduled portion, respectively, and the insulating member is opposite to the introduction direction of the counter bar and the clamp bar for welding. A welding device, characterized in that it is introduced from and inserted between the welding scheduled portions.

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