WO2019160220A1 - High speed stack manufacturing apparatus for prismatic secondary battery - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a stack manufacturing apparatus for a prismatic secondary battery, comprising an electrode plate loading unit (20) which has a rotating body (22) rotating around an axial line that is horizontal to the ground, having a plurality of electrode plate holding panels (21a, 21b,..), which are for holding electrode plates, attached along the circumference of the rotating body (22), allowing the rotating body (22) to rotate in one direction in the order of rotating operation-stop operation-rotating operation and rotate at a predetermined angle of less than or equal to 180 degrees per rotating operation, and allowing predetermined work to be performed for the electrode plate holding panels (21a, 21b,..) during the stop operation of the rotating body (22), wherein the work includes receiving an electrode plate (1) supplied from the outside of the rotating body (22) and transferring the received electrode plate to the outside of the rotating body (22), and the respective work can be performed simultaneously for the electrode plate holding panels that are in different positions.

Description

High speed stack manufacturing device for square secondary battery

The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a cell of a rectangular secondary battery, and more particularly, to an apparatus for manufacturing a stack in which an anode plate and an anode plate are alternately placed on a separator.

In general, a chemical cell is composed of a pair of electrodes and an electrolyte of a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate, and the amount of energy that can be stored varies depending on the electrode and the material of the electrolyte. These chemical cells are classified into primary batteries used only for one-time discharges and secondary batteries that can be reused through repetitive charging and discharging due to a very slow charging reaction. Recently, the use of secondary batteries is increasing due to the advantages of charging and discharging. .

Due to its advantages, secondary batteries have been applied to various technical fields throughout the industry, and are widely used as energy sources of mobile communication devices such as smart phones, and are attracting attention as energy sources of electric vehicles.

The secondary battery is formed in a form in which a positive electrode plate, a separator, and a negative electrode plate are sequentially stacked to be immersed in an electrolyte. There are two main methods of manufacturing an inner cell stack of the secondary battery.

In the case of small secondary batteries, a method of arranging a negative electrode plate and a positive electrode plate on a separator and winding them in a jelly-roll form is widely used, whereas in the case of a medium and large secondary battery having more electric capacity, A method of fabricating a cathode plate and a cathode plate by stacking them in a proper order with a separator is widely used. Particularly, in the case of the lamination method, the punched electrode plate is mainly used, and thus the battery has excellent performance due to a relatively large space through which the electrolyte solution penetrates between the edge of the electrode plate and the separator.

In a method of fabricating a secondary battery cell stack in a stacking manner, in a zigzag-type stacking method, a separator 3 is folded in a zigzag form as illustrated in FIG. 1, and a negative electrode plate 1 therebetween. And the positive electrode plate 2 are alternately stacked.

As the zigzag type stacking method, which is widely used in recent years, as shown in FIG. 2, the stack base 5 is stacked while moving horizontally between the negative plate 1 magazine on the left side and the positive plate 2 magazine on the right side. There is a way. According to this method, when the stack base 5 is moved toward the negative plate 1 magazine (A in FIG. 2), the negative plate loader 4a moving between the negative plate magazine and the stack base 5 separates the negative plate 1 from the separator. Lay on top. Then, the stack base 5 moves to the right side of the positive plate 2 magazine (B in FIG. 2), and the positive plate loader 4b similarly stacks the positive plate 1 on the separator 3. By repeating this process, a cell stack in which the separator is folded in a zigzag form between the negative electrode plate and the positive electrode plate is obtained.

A similar stacking method by horizontal movement of a stack base is disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-1140447 (registered on April 19, 2012, hereinafter referred to as 'prior art 1'). According to the prior art 1, the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate which have been placed in the cartridge are respectively transferred to the alignment tray by the transfer robot, aligned in the alignment tray and then transferred to the lamination tray. Lamination is achieved by moving the lamination tray horizontally in the manner shown in FIG. 2 as described above.

Korean Patent No. 10-1730469 (registered on April 20, 2017, hereinafter referred to as 'prior art 2') has a tilting stage in which a negative electrode plate and a positive electrode plate are alternately placed while reciprocatingly rotating at a predetermined angle about a horizontal axis, on a tilting stage. Disclosed is a cell stack manufacturing apparatus for alternately stacking a negative electrode plate and a positive electrode plate on a continuously supplied separator. Also disclosed is the use of a pole plate loading unit consisting of a plurality of link members for transferring a pole plate from a cassette in which a plurality of negative plate or positive plate is stacked to an alignment table.

Patent No. 10-1806939 (registered on Dec. 8, 2017, hereinafter referred to as 'prior art 3') is zigzag by a folding line heated by picking up both ends of a separator passing through two guide rollers arranged in two rows with heating tongs. After forming a separation membrane folded in the form, the present invention discloses a method of manufacturing a stacked electrode assembly of a system in which the separation membrane and the first and second electrodes are supplied together to a rotary body rotating in a rotary type so that the electrodes are sandwiched and stacked between the separation membranes.

Prior art 3 is difficult to align the electrode plates before and after the process of sandwiching the electrode plates between the separators, as well as the probability that the electrode inserted is misaligned with the rotation of the rotor. This can result in irregular spaces in which electrolyte can seep, and relatively narrow areas. Therefore, it is difficult to see it as a way to guarantee the production of a battery having excellent performance.

The prior arts 1 and 2 have the following limitations on the plate loading speed and the moving speed of the stack base.

In the above prior art 1, the transfer robot for transferring the pole plate from the cassette to the alignment tray and also from the alignment tray to the stacking tray has to return to the previous position after delivering the pole plate, which inevitably takes a return time. Therefore, the period by which the electrode plates are loaded into the stacking tray becomes longer.

In addition, the moving speed of the stacking tray moving horizontally is limited due to the characteristics of the moving method called 'horizontal moving'. The reason for this is as follows.

First, as the moving speed of the horizontally moving stack tray (or the stack base) increases, damage to the portion of the separator gripped by the gripper on the stack base increases. This is because the stack base reciprocates between two positions, and thus moves in the order of move-stop-counter movement, and as the speed increases, the inertial force due to acceleration increases, and the force applied to the separator portion that is gripped when stopped increases. Since this may cause damage to the separator, the moving speed of the stack base is limited below a certain speed.

Second, the movement speed is limited because of the time required to correct the 'feedback phenomenon' of the separator accompanying the horizontal movement of the stack base. Referring to FIG. 3, which shows a typical connection configuration of the horizontally moving stack base and the separator, a roll-shaped separator 3 extends through the reel member 6 and the guide roller 7 to the stack base 5. In the drawing, when the stack base located on the right side moves horizontally down the guide roller 7 to the left side, the tension of the separator should be maintained so that the separator does not collapse. This is achieved by the pressure roller 8. That is, as the stack base 5 moves to the left side, the pressure roller 8 descends and the tension of the separator is maintained. At this time, it is inevitable that the portion L of the separator, which has been unrolled downward to the stack base after the guide roller 7, is fed back upward through the guide roller 7. In general, when the polymer membrane is fed back, it is easy to get out of the unwinding position, similar to that when the roll-type toilet paper is unwound and jagged. To correct this, the reel member 6 and the guide roller 7 must be moved back and forth during the feedback. The time required for this calibration operation limits the horizontal movement speed of the stack base 5.

Therefore, in terms of the performance of the equipment, although it is possible to further increase the moving speed of the stack base, it is impossible to drive above a certain speed.

 In the prior art 2 as well, since the link-type loading unit for transporting the pole plate from the pole plate cassette to the alignment table requires a time for returning the pole plate to the alignment table and then returning to the cassette position, the pole plate loading speed is slowed by that amount. In addition, the reciprocating rotational speed may be limited due to the limitation of the speed for preventing damage to the gripped separator when the tilting stage is reciprocated at an angle, and the feedback of the separator.

The present invention aims to prevent a drop in loading speed due to the return time of the loading mechanisms reciprocating between the pole plate cassette and the pole plate alignment position or stack base.

Another object of the present invention is to overcome the limitation that the movement speed of the stack base reciprocating between the positive electrode stack position and the negative electrode stack position is limited to prevent damage to the separator.

According to one or more embodiments of the present invention, a stack manufacturing apparatus for a rectangular secondary battery includes a pole plate loading unit having a rotating body rotating about an axis horizontal to the ground, and holding the pole plate. A plurality of pole plate holding panels are attached along the circumference of the rotating body, and the rotating body rotates in one direction in the order of rotation operation-stop operation-rotation operation, and rotates by a predetermined angle of 180 degrees or less per rotation operation. A predetermined operation for the pole plate holding panel during the stop operation of the rotating body, the operation including receiving a pole plate supplied from the outside of the rotating body, and transferring the received pole plate to the outside of the rotating body. This may be performed and each of the operations may be performed simultaneously with respect to the pole plate holding panel at different positions from each other.

The stack manufacturing apparatus for a rectangular secondary battery according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the other object as described above, the stack base on which the pole plate to be stacked is placed, the gripper for fixing the pole plate placed on the stack base, the anode plate is placed And a stacking unit having a moving means for moving the stack base between a losing position and a position at which the negative electrode plate is placed, the moving means moving the stack base in a U-shaped or lower half circle trajectory. Can be.

The stack manufacturing apparatus for a square secondary battery according to the present invention transfers the pole plates from the pole plate cassette to the pole plate alignment position or the stack base by using a rotating body rotating in one direction, and thus does not require a return time due to the reciprocating motion, thereby providing a faster pole plate. It is possible to move.

In the stack manufacturing apparatus for a rectangular secondary battery according to the present invention, the stack base is moved between a positive electrode stack position and a negative electrode stack position by a U-shaped trajectory or a lower semicircular trajectory, so that there is no fear of damaging the separator by the gripper and the separator is not fed back. The movement speed of the base can be increased to the maximum in terms of equipment performance.

Therefore, the stack manufacturing apparatus for a square secondary battery according to the present invention can increase the speed of stack stacking operation, significantly shorten the work time and improve productivity. Furthermore, the same productivity can be achieved using fewer stack fabrication devices, thereby reducing device purchase and maintenance costs and increasing space efficiency.

1 is a side view schematically showing an inner cell stack of a secondary battery manufactured by a zigzag stacked method.

2 is a conceptual diagram of a conventional zigzag stacking method.

3 is a side view of a conventional zigzag stack manufacturing apparatus, showing a path through which the separator is supplied to the stack base.

4 is a perspective view of a stack manufacturing apparatus for a rectangular secondary battery according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the stack manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the stack manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 4.

7 is a rear view of the stack manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 4.

8 is a front view of the stack manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG.

9 is another perspective view of the stack manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 4.

10 is a plan view of the electrode plate supply unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

11 is a perspective view of the pole plate loading unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 illustrates the operation of the pole plate loading unit with devices located along its periphery in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 13 shows the movement path of the pole plate during the pole plate alignment operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

14A, 14B, and 14C illustrate a movement trajectory of a stack base in an electrode stacking unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

15A is a conceptual diagram illustrating a path in which the stack base moves to the left according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 15B illustrates a path in which the stack base moves to the right.

In FIG. 16, a shows sequentially a movement path of the stack base according to the prior art, and b is a conceptual diagram sequentially illustrating a movement path of the stack base according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a high speed stack manufacturing apparatus for a rectangular secondary battery according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In FIGS. 5-9, which show different orientation views of the entire perspective view of FIG. 4, some components may have been removed for convenience of description.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a high speed stack manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. For convenience of description, components not directly related to the present invention, such as a stack discharge unit, a stack wrapping unit, or a separator cutting unit, are not shown.

Referring to FIG. 4, a loading and stacking structure for any one of the negative plates 1 and the positive plates 2 is arranged in front of the vertical plate 17, and behind the vertical plate 17, the remaining plates of the other type are disposed. Since the loading and stacking structure of the same structure is arranged, the description of one of them is replaced by the description of the other.

Based on the pole plate loading unit 20, which includes a rotating body 22 capable of rotating about a rotation axis fixed to the vertical plate 17 installed on the frame 16, below the pole plate supply unit 10. Above, the pole plate alignment unit 30 is provided, and the stack base loader 55 and the stacking unit 40 are installed toward the side surface on which the roll-shaped separator 3 is hung. The rotating body 22 has its rotation axis fixed to the vertical plate 17, the camera 35 is installed on the horizontal plate 18 fixed above the vertical plate 17, obstructing the viewing angle of the camera 35 The window 36 is formed so as not to. A sliding mechanism 38 and a defective discharge tray 37 are attached to the horizontal plate 18.

Referring to FIG. 5, a pole plate supply unit 10 including cassettes 11a and 11b and a pole plate loader 12 is disposed on the frame 16. In the cassettes 11a and 11b, there may be stacked pole plates (not shown) in a plurality of rectangular shapes, and the cassette 11b is positioned under the pole plate loader 12 during operation of the pole plate loading unit 10. Done.

The pole plate holding panels 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f are arranged at regular intervals along the circumference of the rotor 22. Reference numerals 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f are not assigned to specific panels, but are assigned according to their relative positions with the rotating body 22. For example, 21a is assigned to the panel in the lowest position of the rotating body 22, and 21d is assigned to the panel in the uppermost position. The number of pole plate holding panels may be selected according to the number of required tasks or other variables, as described below.

In FIG. 5, the sensor 19 is provided at a position facing the panel 21c. The sensor 19 may be attached to the vertical plate 17. As the sensor 19, for example, a laser displacement sensor may be used to detect whether the pole plate holding panel 21c holds two or more pole plates at a time.

On the left side of the rotating body 22, a stacking unit 40 including a stack base 41, a guide rod 49, a horizontal moving mechanism 50, and the like is disposed, and a stack base loader 55 over the stack base 41. ) Is installed. The pole plate transfer panel 56 is attached to one end of the stack base loader 55, and the stack base loader 55 may rotate about a rotation axis located at the other end. As shown in FIG. 5, the stack base loader 55 may rotate from a position where the pole plate transfer panel 56 faces the stack base 41 to a position that faces the pole plate holding panel 21e. Of course, the opposite direction of rotation is also possible.

The defective discharge tray 37 attached to the sliding mechanism 38 is normally waited at the position shown in FIG. 5, and moved between the pole plate alignment panel 31b and the alignment base 34 when the defective electrode plate is to be discharged. After receiving the defective electrode plate, it can be returned to its usual position.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a pole plate alignment unit 30 comprising pole plate alignment panels 31 a, 31 b, alignment loader 32, alignment base 34, and the like. As before, reference numeral 31b designates an alignment panel at a position facing the pole plate holding panel 31d and 31a designates an alignment panel at a position facing the alignment base 34. The two pole plate alignment bases 31a and 31b are connected to the alignment loader 32, so that their positions are mutually changed by the rotation of the alignment loader 32 by 180 degrees. The camera 35 (see FIGS. 8 and 12) is installed on the alignment base 34, and the alignment state of the unaligned electrode plate may be confirmed by the camera 35. The camera 35 may be a vision camera that is manually adjustable on the X-Y-Z axis. The alignment base 34 may be an XYθ alignment table capable of position correction, and backlight illumination may be applied. In addition, the alignment base 34 may exert a vacuum suction force on the electrode plate placed thereon. With this arrangement, the alignment base 34 can be finely moved in the X-Y axis or the X-Y-Z axis until the alignment is achieved by the camera 35 detecting the edge position of the pole plate on the alignment base 34. The camera 35 may acquire various information on whether the pole plate is defective from the edge state of the pole plate, in addition to whether the edges are aligned, whether it is broken, lifted or crumpled, and the pole plate tab 1a (see FIG. 11). It may include the presence and location of the. The pole plate alignment panel 31a is located between them when the camera 35 checks the pole plates lying on the alignment base 34, so that the camera 35 can secure the field of view of the edges of the pole plates. 31a is formed to a size such that the edges of the electrode plate 1 held on the panel 31a protrude from the panel 31a (see FIG. 13).

The failure discharge tray 37 described above may be controlled to slide in at a necessary time so that the failure determination by the camera 35 or the two or more pole plates detected by the sensor 19 described above may be accommodated. .

Referring to FIG. 7, the pole plate alignment panels 31a and 31b are connected to the alignment loader 32 by the cylinders 33a and 33b, and are liftable.

Referring to FIG. 8, a roll of separator 3 and a stacking unit 40 are shown, and the stacking unit 40 includes a horizontal movement mechanism 50, an actuator 46, an actuator rod 46a, and the like.

Referring to FIG. 9, the stacking unit 40 is shown in more detail. The stack base 41, the grippers 42a, 42b, 43a, 43b, the motor 44, and the like are fixed to the stack base holding frame 45. The actuator rod 46a and the guide rod 49 are connected below. The actuator rod 46a and the guide rod 49 are movable up and down through the horizontal moving plate 47. Therefore, the actuator rod 46a can be raised or lowered by the operation of the actuator 46, which allows the stack base holding frame 45 and the stack base 41 to vertically move up or down.

The horizontal moving plate 47 is fixed to the bracket 48 that is movable along the rail 51 of the horizontal moving mechanism 50. Therefore, when the horizontal moving mechanism 50 is operated, the horizontal moving plate 47 may be moved left and right, and thus the stack base 41 may be moved horizontally.

Hereinafter, the operation of the stack-type secondary battery stack manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention configured as described above.

First, referring to FIG. 10, the process of supplying the electrode plate to the stack manufacturing apparatus will be described. The cassette 11a enters the A direction and moves to the position of the cassette 11b. Then, the electrode plate stored in the cassette 11b. Are supplied to the pole plate holding panel 21a. When the cassette 11b is emptied, it is moved to the position of the cassette 11c in the B direction, and then discharged from the electrode plate supply unit 10, and the cassette 11a that is waiting is moved to the position of the cassette 11b. Such movement of the cassettes may be automatically performed by a signal of a sensor that detects whether the pole plate in the cassette 11b is exhausted.

When the cassette 11b containing the pole plates is provided in this way, as shown in FIG. 11, the elongated suction pickers 14a, 14b, and 14c attached to the arm 15 are lowered by lowering the pole plate loader 12 in the form of an orthogonal robot. , 14d) vacuum-adsorbs the electrode plate 1 on the uppermost surface of the electrode plate piles in the cassette 14d. At this time, the suction picker adsorbs near the edge of the rectangular electrode plate. Then, the pole plate loader 12 starts to ascend and ascends until the pole plate holding panel 21a which is in an empty state, that is, without holding the pole plate, adsorbs the pole plate. The pole plate holding panel (refer to reference numeral 21c of FIG. 11; for convenience of description, the pole plate 1 is treated as transparent on the drawing so that the panel on the back thereof is displayed and denoted by the reference numerals below). The vacuum holes 23 are formed in 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f. In this embodiment, three vacuum holes are formed. The vacuum hole 23 may be connected to the vacuum generator 25 (see FIG. 5) to generate a vacuum suction force on the surfaces of the panels 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f. The number of vacuum holes 23 is variable, and if necessary, it is also possible to adjust so that a vacuum is generated in only a part of the vacuum holes 23. Inside the panels 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f, fastening holes 24 were formed to be fastened to the rotating body 22.

The pole plate holding panel 21a is formed such that the edges of the pole plate can protrude from the panel 21a when the area of the pole plate is narrower than that of the pole plate 1, especially when the rectangular plate is held (see FIG. 11). By doing so, the adsorption pickers 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d can be prevented from being disturbed by the electrode plate holding panel 21a when they are raised while adsorbing the electrode plate 1. Of course, the area of the plate holding panel may be larger than the plate and any other shape may be possible if it does not interfere with the lift of the adsorption picker. When the pole plate holding panel 21a holds the pole plate 1, supply of one pole plate is completed, and the rotating body 22 rotates again.

The rotation method of the rotating body 22 will be described. The rotating body 22 rotates intermittently and periodically in the order of rotation operation-stop operation-rotation operation, and rotates in one direction but is less than 180 degrees per one rotation operation. Can rotate by an angle. Referring to FIG. 12, all six pole plate holding panels 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, and 21f are attached to the rotating body 22, and one turn of the rotating body 22 is made of six rotational operations. That is, one rotational operation rotates the rotor 22 by 60 degrees. FIG. 12 captures a stop motion of the rotating body 22, in which the plate loading operation described above is performed on the plate holding panel 21a; An inspection operation is performed on the pole plate holding panel 21c by using a sensor 19, for example, a laser displacement sensor, to determine whether the panel 21c holds two or more pole plates; Pole plate alignment work is performed on the pole plate holding panel 21d; The electrode plate holding panel 21e is performed to transfer the electrode plate held by the panel 21e to the stack base 41. As such, desired operations can be simultaneously performed on a plurality of panels attached to the rotor 22 during one stop operation, and when these operations are completed, subsequent 60 degree rotations will be performed and subsequent pole plates The above operations are performed again. That is, all the above-described operations can be performed on one electrode plate by moving the electrode plate by the rotation of the rotating body 22 while the position where the predetermined operation is performed is fixed. In this way, the pole plate 1 supplied to the pole plate holding panel 21a can be transferred to the stack base 41 after passing all the desired operations before the rotor 22 turns around. Depending on the number of pole plate holding panels and the number of operations required, the panel may be in an operation-free state when the panel is stopped at a particular position, and the panel may be empty without holding the plate. In this way, since the pole plate is continuously transferred in one direction, it is not necessary to return to the opposite direction, thereby saving the pole plate transfer time.

As shown in Fig. 13, the rotation of the rotating body 22 is made in the direction of the arrow (a), and the alignment operation with respect to the pole plate located at the top of the rotating body is performed as follows.

First, the cylinder of the alignment loader 32 so that the pole plate alignment pad 31b can suck the unaligned pole plate held by the pole plate holding pad 21d (see FIG. 12) stopped at the top of the rotating body 22. 33b) goes down. When the pole plate alignment pad 31b adsorbs the pole plate, the cylinder 33b is raised, the alignment loader 32 is rotated 180 degrees (in the direction of the arrow (b1) in FIG. 13), and then the cylinder 33a is lowered to align the base 34 Place the unaligned plate on the plate. The camera 35 determines the alignment by detecting the corner position of the unaligned electrode plate or the like and finely moves the alignment base 34 along the X-Y-Z axis until the alignment is confirmed. By operating the alignment loader 32 and the pole plate alignment pad in the reverse order, the aligned pole plate is returned to the pole plate holding pad 21d (in the direction of arrow (b2) in FIG. 13). Since the operations indicated by arrows (b1) and (b2) in FIG. 13 proceed simultaneously, the other electrode plate alignment pad 31a adsorbs the electrode plate already aligned when the electrode plate alignment pad 31b adsorbs the unaligned electrode plate, When the pole plate alignment pad 31a puts the unaligned pole plate on the alignment base 34, the other pole plate alignment pad 31b puts the aligned pole plate on the pole plate holding pad 21d.

The pole plates arranged as described above are moved to a position facing the pole plate transfer panel 56 of the stack base loader 55 according to the further rotation of the rotating body, and the pole plate transfer is performed by vertically moving the stack base loader 55 in the extending direction. It is delivered to panel 56. Next, the stack base loader moves vertically in the contraction direction and rotates again (indicated by arrow (c)) so that the electrode plate is loaded into the stack base 41. If the length of the stack base loader 55 is optimally adjusted to take over the plate, the vertical movement of the stack base loader 55 may be minimized and even vertical movement may not be required.

The stack base 41 then moves in the direction of arrow d for stacking the other electrodes 2.

Now, a method of moving the stack base 41 will be described with reference to FIGS. 14A, 14B, and 14C.

In FIG. 14A, a stack base 41 is located at the upper right of the drawing, which captures the position at which one of the positive electrode plates and the negative electrode plates are stacked on the separator, and the electrode plates are just stacked. When the pole plate is placed on the stack base 41, the gripper 43a grips the electrode plate and the separator underneath at once, which is accomplished by the gripper 43a retreating-rising-forward-lowering, with the opposite side The gripper 42a is positioned under the electrode plates just stacked (see Fig. 15A). Since the horizontal movement mechanism 50 may operate for the horizontal movement of the stack base 41 and the actuator 46 may operate for the vertical movement, the combined operation of the stack base 41 may be U-shaped. Move in the direction of the arrow marked with a lower half circle. Their combined operation can be implemented using PC control or PLC control. FIG. 14B shows the stack base 41 to the left and in a lowered state, and FIG. 14C subsequently shows the stack base 41 to the left and in a raised state. In this manner, the stack base 41 moves in the U-shaped or lower semi-circular trajectory in the electrode stacking unit.

14A to 14C are further stacked by the movement of the separator, and after reaching the position of FIG. 14C, when the remaining ones of the two kinds of pole plates are stacked on the separator, the gripper 42a grips the separator and the separator below. Next, it moves along the U-shaped or lower semicircular trajectory in the opposite direction, that is, in the state of FIG. 14A via FIG. 14C to FIG. 14B.

15A and 15B conceptually illustrate the movement of the stack base 41 shown in FIGS. 14A-14C. Referring to FIG. 15A, a process of moving the stack base 41 from a right side to a left side in a U-shaped or lower half-circular trajectory is shown in one view. It is important here that the separator 3 is not fed back during this movement of the lower half circle trajectory. In other words, the portion of the separation membrane 3 corresponding to the length from the roller (hereinafter referred to as 'end roller') located at the lower end of the guide rollers 7 to the portion where the gripper 43a is gripped is L1-L2-L3. It will increase gradually to -L4. In this way, since the separator is only released without being wound in the reverse direction, the path where the separator is unwound is kept constant without being shaken, and there is no need to realign the reel member 6 and the guide roller 7. Therefore, the stack base 41 can be continuously moved without waiting for realignment, and the moving speed can be increased to the maximum performance of the equipment.

Additional configurations may be added to further increase the stability of such semi-circular or U-shaped movement of the stack base. For example, if a powder clutch (not shown) employed to maintain the tension of the separator is malfunctioning, the separator may not loosen or even run back at the desired speed. In order to prevent the risk of unexpected malfunction including this, or in case the progress of the membrane is not performed as desired by other factors, a sensor for detecting the progress direction and / or speed of the membrane (not shown) Can be installed). Such sensors may be installed near the end rollers or in other suitable locations. By the feedback of the detection result by the sensor to the control unit for controlling the operation of the actuator 46 and the horizontal movement mechanism 50, it will be possible to control the separation membrane to proceed in the desired travel direction and travel speed. It is also possible to monitor the progress of the separator in a manner other than the sensor, for example, by sensing the rotational direction and speed of the guide roller 7 including the end roller or a separate roller. Based on this monitoring information, the movement speed of the stack base may be adjusted, thereby preventing the feedback of the separator and releasing the separator at a desired speed.

In FIG. 15B, which shows the movement of the lower half-circular trajectory of the stack base 41 in the opposite direction to that in FIG. 15A, similarly, the portion of the separation membrane 3 moves L1'-L2'-L3'-L4 during the movement of the stack base 41. 'Will gradually increase.

In FIG. 16, (a) sequentially illustrates the movement path of the stack base according to the prior art, and (b) illustrates the movement path of the stack base according to the present invention in order. Referring to (b) showing the movement path of the stack base according to the present invention, going from step (1) to step (2), the electrode 1 was stacked and the gripper 43a was raised above the electrode 1 and gripped. Thereafter, the stack base 41 was moved semi-circular or U-shaped from step (3) to step (5), and in step 6 another electrode 2 was stacked and the gripper 42a rose above the electrode 2. Came and gripped.

Comparing the movement path (b) with (a) which is a movement path according to the prior art, the movement path (b) in the step (3) to step (5) is separated by the gripper 43a by the gripper 43a compared to (a) You can see that little force is applied to the. Comparing step (4), in the movement path (a), the force of the gripper 43a is transmitted to the separator 3 as a whole in the acceleration direction (that is, the left side), whereas in the movement path (b), the acceleration direction ( That is, the force due to the gripper 43a is only partially transmitted to the separation membrane 3 on the upper left side. Furthermore, when the step 5 is compared, the acceleration direction is left in the movement path a so that the gripper 43a Blade portion of the force exerts a force on the narrow area of the separation membrane (3), while in the movement path (b) the acceleration direction is upward, so that the surface portion of the gripper (43a) exerts a force on a relatively large area of the separation membrane (3). Will be added.

Therefore, the risk of damage to the separator 3 is significantly lowered by employing a semi-circular or U-shaped movement of the stack base according to the present invention.

As described above, according to the stack manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to move the electrode plate more quickly, and the lamination speed of the electrode plate can be maximized. This may bring a significant productivity improvement in the manufacturing field of the rectangular secondary battery.

In the above, certain preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and any person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from the spirit and spirit of the present invention as claimed in the claims may have various modifications and Modifications may be made.

Description of the sign

10: pole plate supply unit

20: pole plate loading unit

21a ~ f: pole plate holding panel

22: rotating body

30: pole plate alignment unit

40: lamination unit

41: stack base

55: stack base loader

Claims (18)

1. A pole plate loading unit 20 having a rotating body 22 rotating about an axis horizontal to the ground,

   A plurality of pole plate holding panels 21a, 21b, .. for holding the pole plate are attached along the circumference of the rotating body 22,

   The rotating body 22 rotates in one direction in the order of rotation operation-stop operation-rotation operation, and rotates by a predetermined angle of 180 degrees or less per rotation operation.

   Predetermined work for the pole plate holding panels 21a, 21b,... During the stop operation of the rotor 22-this operation accommodates the pole plate 1 supplied from outside the rotor 22. , And conveying the accommodated electrode plate out of the rotating body 22—can be performed,

   Each of the operations can be performed simultaneously on the pole plate holding panels in different positions

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
2. The method of claim 1,

   One of the pole plate holding panels is positioned in parallel with the ground at the lowest end of the rotating body for each stop motion of the rotating body 22,

   The operation for receiving the electrode plate is performed at the lowest position

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
3. The method of claim 2,

   The operation includes aligning the accommodated electrode plate.

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein

   One of the pole plate holding panels is positioned at the top of the rotor 22 for each stop motion of the rotor 22,

   The operation of aligning the electrode plate at the uppermost position is performed

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein

   The operation includes inspecting whether the accommodated electrode plate is defective.

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
6. The method of claim 5,

   The inspection of the failure includes checking whether two or more pole plates 1 are accommodated in the pole plate holding panel 21c.

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
7. The method of claim 6,

   The plurality of pole plate holding panel is six

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
8. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 7,

   A pole plate loader 12 having a lifting arm 15 and a plurality of elongated suction pickers 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d attached perpendicularly to the arm,

   In the electrode plate receiving operation, the suction picker is arranged to suck the corner portion of the electrode plate 1 which is lower than the lowest end of the rotating body 22,

   The pole plate holding panel 21a so that the suction pickers 14a, 14b, 14c, and 14d, which accompany and rise when the arm 15 is raised, do not collide with the pole plate holding panel 21a located at the bottom of the rotating body 22. ) Is sized such that the edges of the electrode plate 1 held on the panel 21a protrude from the panel 21a,

   The arm 15 is lowered when the pole plate 1 lifted up by the suction picker is received by the pole plate holding panel 21a.

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
9. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 7,

   It further comprises an alignment loader 32 having two pole plate alignment panels 31a, 31b, and a pole plate alignment unit 30 comprising an alignment base 34, wherein the alignment base 34 comprises the rotating body ( Arranged side by side with the pole plate holding panel 21d at the uppermost position of 22),

   Each time the alignment loader 32 rotates 180 degrees, the two pole plate alignment panels 31a and 31b face the pole plate holding panel 21d at the uppermost position and face the alignment base 34. By alternately moving to the position of one of them, one pole plate alignment panel 31a lifts the unaligned pole plate on the pole plate holding panel 21d and lowers it onto the alignment base 34. ) Can lift the aligned pole plates on the alignment base 34 and put them down on the pole plate holding panel 21d.

   Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
10. The method of claim 9,

    The pole plate alignment unit 30 further includes a camera 35, wherein the camera 35 is installed above the alignment base 34,

    The pole plate alignment panel 31a has the edges of the pole plate 1 held on the panel 31a so that the camera 35 can secure a view of the edge of the pole plate lying on the alignment base 34. Is formed to a size to protrude from (31a),

    The alignment base 34 may be moved in the X-Y axis until the alignment of the electrode plate is confirmed according to the measured value by the camera 35.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
11. The method of claim 10,

    The camera 35 reads whether the defect is identifiable from the edge state of the electrode plate, including the presence or absence of electrode tabs and electrode tab positions of the electrode plate placed on the alignment base 34.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
12. The method of claim 8,

    The pole plate alignment unit 30 further includes a sliding mechanism 38 and a defective discharge tray 37 attached to the sliding mechanism 38, wherein the sliding mechanism 38 identifies the defective discharge tray 37. It can be moved between the alignment base 34 and the pole plate alignment panel 21d, so that the pole plate determined as defective can be stored in the failure discharge tray 37.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,

    Further stack base loader 55, which is rotatable by an angle about a rotation axis at one end and linearly movable in the longitudinal direction such that the pole plate transmission panel 56 provided at the other end is far from or near the rotation axis. Including,

    In the operation of delivering the accommodated pole plate to the outside of the rotating body 22, the stack base loader 55 rotates so that the pole plate holding panel 21e and the pole plate transfer panel 56 on which the transfer operation is performed face to face. By the linear movement of the pole plate delivery panel 56 can receive the received pole plate

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,

    And further comprising a vacuum generator 25 attached to the rotating body 22, wherein the pole plate holding panels 21a, 21b, .. are provided with vacuum holes 23, and the vacuum holes 23 are the vacuum generators. Is connected to (25) can generate a vacuum suction force on the surface of the pole plate holding panel (21a, 21b, ...)

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
15. The method of claim 1,

    The stack base 41 on which the pole plates 1 and 2 to be stacked are placed, the grippers 42a, 42b, 43a and 43b for fixing the pole plates placed on the stack base 41, and the position at which the anode plate 2 is placed; It further comprises a stacking unit 40 having a moving means for moving the stack base 41 between the position where the negative electrode plate 1 is placed,

    The moving means may move the stack base 41 to a U-shaped trajectory.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
16. The method of claim 1,

    The stack base 41 on which the pole plates 1 and 2 to be stacked are placed, the grippers 42a, 42b, 43a and 43b for fixing the pole plates placed on the stack base 41, and the position at which the anode plate 2 is placed; It further comprises a stacking unit 40 having a moving means for moving the stack base 41 between the position where the negative electrode plate 1 is placed,

    The moving means may move the stack base 41 to a lower half circle type trajectory.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
17. The method according to claim 15 or 16,

    The moving means includes an actuator 46 capable of vertically moving the stack base 41, and a horizontal moving mechanism 50 capable of horizontally moving the stack base 41.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.
18. The method according to claim 15 or 16,

    The feedback of the separator 3 does not occur while the moving means moves the stack base 41.

    Stack manufacturing apparatus for square secondary batteries.

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