Battery cell tab cutting device and method

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cell tab cutting device and method. The cell tab cutting device comprises a conveying part, a cell loading part, a tab flattening part, a positioning part, a cutting part and a blanking part; the cell loading part places the cell on the conveying part; the conveying part drives the cell to pass through the tab flattening part, the positioning part, the cutting part and finally to the blanking part in sequence; the tab flattening part flattens the tab; the positioning part positions the tab; the cutting part cuts the tab; the blanking part separates the cell from the discharge end of the conveying part for blanking; the conveying part comprises a cell fixing jig, a chain mechanism, a driving mechanism and a first clamping mechanism; the cell fixing jig is installed on the chain mechanism; the driving mechanism drives the chain mechanism to rotate, and the chain mechanism drives the cell fixing jig to move cyclically; the first clamping mechanism is configured to open the cell fixing jig to fix the cell. In the present invention, the conveying part can realize cyclic loading and unloading, with high production efficiency; the cell fixing jig can be opened and closed automatically, realizing automation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to lithium battery manufacturing equipment and a manufacturing method, in particular to a battery cell tab cutting device and a method. Background Art

[0002] When manufacturing lithium batteries, the tabs of individual cells need to be flattened and cut, so the cells need to be transported to the tab cutting station.

[0003] The traditional method of transporting cells in a cell tab cutting device is to fix the cells on a jig and use a driving mechanism to push the jig from the back to the front to transport the cells; when the cells are removed from the jig, the empty jig is transported to the front channel by lifting and rotating. This method of transporting cells cannot be circulated and has low transport efficiency, which leads to low production efficiency of the cell tab cutting device. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present invention aims at solving the problem of low efficiency of existing battery cell tab cutting devices and provides a highly efficient battery cell tab cutting device; in addition, the present invention also provides a highly efficient battery cell tab cutting method.

[0005] The technical scheme of the battery cell tab cutting device in the present invention is as follows: a battery cell tab cutting device comprises a conveying part, a battery cell loading part, a tab flattening part, a positioning part, a cutting part and a unloading part, wherein: the battery cell loading part is arranged at the loading end of the conveying part to place the battery cell on the loading end of the conveying part; the conveying part drives the battery cell placed at the loading end to pass through the tab flattening part, the positioning part, the cutting part and then to the unloading part in sequence; the tab flattening part flattens the tab of the battery cell located at the position of the tab flattening part conveyed by the conveying part; the positioning part positions the tab of the battery cell after the tab flattening part is flattened; the cutting part positions the tab of the battery cell according to the positioning part The tabs of the battery cells conveyed to the cutting section are cut according to the positioning information; the unloading section separates the battery cells from the discharge end of the conveying section; wherein: the conveying section comprises a battery cell fixing fixture, a chain mechanism, a driving mechanism and a first clamping mechanism; there are multiple battery cell fixing fixtures, which are fixedly installed on the chain mechanism in sequence; the driving mechanism is transmission-connected to the chain mechanism, and is configured to drive the chain mechanism to rotate, and the rotating chain mechanism drives the battery cell fixing fixture to move cyclically; the first clamping mechanism is installed at the feeding end of the chain mechanism, and is configured to open the battery cell fixing fixture at the feeding end to fix the battery cell to be fed in the battery cell fixing fixture.

[0006] The conveying part of the battery cell tab cutting device drives the battery cell to move by the rotation of the chain, which can cyclically realize the loading and unloading of the battery cell, with high production efficiency and saving site space; the battery cell fixing fixture is designed to be opened and closed under the drive of the clamping mechanism, which can realize the automation of battery cell loading and unloading and improve efficiency.

[0007] Furthermore, the battery cell fixing jig includes a base plate, a first clamping plate, a second clamping plate, a slide rail, a clamping plate mounting block, a tension spring and a connecting piece; the first clamping plate is fixedly mounted on the base plate, the slide rail is fixedly mounted on the base plate, the clamping plate mounting block is movably mounted on the slide rail, the second clamping plate is fixedly mounted on the clamping plate mounting block and is opposite to the first clamping plate, the tension spring is mounted between the base plate and the clamping plate mounting block, and the connecting piece is mounted on the base plate, and is used to fix the battery cell fixing jig on the chain mechanism; the tension spring makes the second clamping plate approach the first clamping plate, and the second clamping plate approaches or moves away from the first clamping plate under the drive of the first clamping mechanism.

[0008] The battery cell fixing fixture adopts a slide rail and a tension spring to realize the opening and closing function, which has a simple structure and low cost. The battery cell fixing fixture is fixed on the chain through a connector, which is easy to install and disassemble.

[0009] Furthermore, an inclined surface is provided on the clamping plate mounting block, and the inclined surface enables the clamping plate mounting block to move along the slide rail under the drive of the first clamping mechanism.

[0010] The opening and closing of the clamping plate is realized by arranging an inclined surface on the clamping plate mounting block of the battery cell fixing fixture, and the structure is simple and ingenious, and the processing is convenient.

[0011] Furthermore, a guide rail is installed on the chain mechanism, a guide wheel is installed on the battery cell fixing fixture, and the guide wheel is installed on the guide rail and runs along the guide rail.

[0012] The guide rail and the guide wheel form a guiding mechanism, which is used to guide the battery cell fixing fixture to ensure that the battery cell fixing fixture does not deviate during movement.

[0013] Furthermore, the first clamping mechanism comprises an unclamping cylinder, a roller mounting plate and an unclamping roller, the unclamping roller is mounted on the roller mounting plate, and the roller mounting plate is mounted on the movable part of the unclamping cylinder.

[0014] The clamping mechanism adopts a clamping cylinder and a clamping roller, which has a simple structure and low cost.

[0015] Furthermore, the battery cell loading part includes two groups of loading suction cups; the two groups of loading suction cups load two battery cells at the same time.

[0016] The battery cell loading part adopts two loading mechanisms, each of which sucks two battery cells at a time, which can improve the loading efficiency.

[0017] Furthermore, the unloading section includes an inspection section, a qualified part cache section, a defective part storage section, a first unloading section and a second unloading section; the inspection section inspects the tabs of the battery cells cut by the cutting section, the qualified part cache section is used to temporarily store the battery cells that have passed the inspection by the inspection section, and the defective part storage section is used to store the battery cells that have failed the inspection by the inspection section; the first unloading section is configured to transport some of the battery cells on the conveying section that have passed the inspection by the inspection section to the qualified part cache section, and to transport the battery cells on the conveying section that have failed the inspection by the inspection section to the defective part storage section; the second unloading section is configured to transport some of the battery cells on the conveying section that have passed the inspection by the inspection section and the battery cells on the qualified part cache section to the downstream workstation.

[0018] The unloading department adopts two types, one for handling qualified products and the other for handling unqualified products, which is convenient for subsequent processing.

[0019] Furthermore, the two cutting parts are arranged in sequence along the conveying direction of the conveying part, and the two cutting parts respectively and sequentially cut the tabs of one of the two adjacent battery cells that have not been cut according to the positioning result of the positioning part.

[0020] The cutting unit uses two units, which can process two cells at a time, thus improving the cutting efficiency.

[0021] The technical scheme of the battery cell tab cutting method in the present invention is as follows: a battery cell tab cutting method, using the above-mentioned battery cell tab cutting device, the method comprising: opening the battery cell fixing fixture at the chain mechanism loading station, placing the battery cell in the battery cell fixing fixture and clamping and fixing the battery cell; driving the chain mechanism to transport the battery cell from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station in sequence; leveling the tab of the battery cell at the tab leveling station; positioning the tab of the battery cell at the positioning station to obtain positioning information; cutting the tab of the battery cell according to the positioning information at the cutting station; unloading the battery cell after the tab is cut from the unloading station.

[0022] The battery cell tab cutting method drives the battery cell to move by the rotation of the chain, and can realize the loading and unloading of the battery cell in a cycle, thereby improving production efficiency.

[0023] Furthermore, the method also includes: loading two battery cells to the loading station side by side at the same time; transporting the battery cells from the loading station to the tab leveling station, positioning station, cutting station and unloading station in sequence, including: transporting the two battery cells from the loading station to the tab leveling station, positioning station, cutting station and unloading station in sequence at the same time; the cutting station includes a first cutting station and a second cutting station, and the tabs of the battery cells are cut at the cutting station according to the positioning information, including: cutting one of the two battery cells at the first cutting station, and cutting the other of the two battery cells at the second cutting station.

[0024] By loading two battery cells side by side at the same time, two battery cells can be processed at one time, which can increase production efficiency exponentially.

[0025] Further, the battery cells after the tabs are cut are unloaded from the unloading station, including: testing the two battery cells after the tabs are cut to obtain testing information; when the testing information indicates that the tabs of the two battery cells are both qualified, unloading the two battery cells to the back-end station;

[0026] When the detection information indicates that both battery cell tabs are unqualified in cutting, the two battery cells are unloaded to the defective part storage department; when the detection information indicates that the tab cutting of one battery cell is qualified and the tab cutting of the other battery cell is unqualified, the battery cell with unqualified tab cutting is unloaded to the defective part storage department, and the battery cell with qualified tab cutting is unloaded to the qualified part cache department; when the battery cells cached in the qualified part cache department reaches a predetermined even number, the battery cells cached in the qualified part cache department are unloaded to the downstream workstation.

[0027] According to the different quality conditions of the two battery cells after the tabs are cut, different unloading methods are adopted respectively, which can unload the materials in an orderly manner, facilitate subsequent processing, and improve unloading efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the battery cell tab cutting device in the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Top view of the .

[0030] Figure 3 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the conveying part.

[0031] Figure 4 for Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure from another perspective.

[0032] Figure 5 for Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the battery cell fixing fixture.

[0033] Figure 6 for Figure 5 Exploded diagram.

[0034] Figure 7 for Figure 3 A partial enlarged view of the guide mechanism.

[0035] Figure 8 for Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the first clamping mechanism and the regularizing mechanism.

[0036] Fig. 9 for Figure 8Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure from another perspective.

[0037] Fig.10 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the battery cell loading part.

[0038] Fig.11 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the tab flattening part.

[0039] Fig.12 for Fig.11 Side view of.

[0040] Fig.13 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the cutting part.

[0041] Fig.14 for Fig.13 Side view of.

[0042] Fig.15 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the first blanking part.

[0043] Fig.16 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the defective parts storage unit.

[0044] Fig.17 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the qualified parts cache part.

[0045] Fig.18 for Fig.17 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure from another perspective.

[0046] Figures 1 to 18 The invention comprises: a battery cell tab cutting device 1, a battery cell 100, and a tab 101;

[0047] Conveying unit 10;

[0048] The battery cell fixing fixture 11, the bottom plate 111, the first clamping plate 112, the second clamping plate 113, the slide rail 114, the clamping plate mounting block 115, the inclined surface 1151, the tension spring 116, the connecting piece 117, the cover plate 118, and the guide wheel 119;

[0049] Chain mechanism 12, connecting block 121;

[0050] Driving mechanism 13;

[0051] A first clamping mechanism 14, a clamping cylinder 141, a roller mounting plate 142, and a clamping roller 143;

[0052] Regularization mechanism 15, regularization cylinder 151, regularization plate 152, notch 153;

[0053] Guide rail 16;

[0054] Battery cell loading part 20;

[0055] Feeding suction cup 21, feeding beam 22, feeding transverse movement mechanism 23, feeding lifting mechanism 24, mounting plate 25;

[0056] Tab flattening portion 30;

[0057] A pressing plate seat 31, a lower pressing plate 32, an upper pressing block 33, a pressing block driving mechanism 34, a manual adjustment mechanism 35, and a positioning part 40;

[0058] A cutting portion 50;

[0059] Translation mechanism 51, translation motor 511, translation rail 512;

[0060] Cutting mechanism 52, knife seat 521, upper cutter 522, lower cutter 523, cutter driving mechanism 524, upper die seat 525, lower die seat 526;

[0061] Clamping mechanism 53, adjusting slide rail 54, hopper 55;

[0062] Detection unit 60;

[0063] A material discharge portion 70;

[0064] The first unloading part 71, the unloading beam 711, the unloading transverse movement mechanism 712, the unloading lifting mechanism 713, and the unloading suction cup 714;

[0065] A second unloading portion 72;

[0066] Defective parts storage unit 73, conveying belt 731, motor mounting seat 732;

[0067] Qualified parts cache section 74, cache platform 741, cache transport mechanism 742, cache translation mechanism 743. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0068] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, the present invention is further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0069] The invention discloses a battery core tab cutting device, which is used for conveying battery cores and leveling and cutting the tabs of the battery cores.

[0070] Figure 1-2 FIG. 1 is an optional embodiment of a cell tab cutting device 1. Figure 1 is a stereogram of the device. Figure 2The battery cell tab cutting device 1 comprises a conveying unit 10 , a battery cell loading unit 20 , a tab leveling unit 30 , a positioning unit 40 , a cutting unit 50 and a discharging unit 70 .

[0071] The transport unit 10 is used to transport the battery cells 100 .

[0072] The battery cell loading portion 20 is disposed at the loading end of the conveying portion 10 to place the battery cells 100 on the loading end of the conveying portion 10 .

[0073] The conveying unit 10 drives the battery cells 100 placed at the loading end to sequentially pass through the tab leveling unit 30 , the positioning unit 40 , the cutting unit 50 and finally to the unloading unit 70 .

[0074] The tab flattening unit 30 flattens the tabs 101 of the battery cell 100 transported to the tab flattening unit 30 by the transporting unit 10 , so as to facilitate subsequent cutting.

[0075] The positioning part 40 positions the tab 101 of the battery cell 100 after being flattened by the tab flattening part 30, so as to facilitate cutting. Optionally, the positioning part 40 performs visual inspection by a camera.

[0076] The cutting unit 50 cuts the tabs 101 of the battery cell 100 transported to the cutting unit 50 according to the positioning information of the positioning unit 40 .

[0077] The unloading portion 70 unloads the battery cells 100 from the unloading end of the conveying portion 10 .

[0078] Figure 3-4 An optional embodiment of the conveying part 10 is shown. Figure 3 It is a stereogram of the component from one perspective. Figure 4 The conveying unit 10 includes a battery core fixing fixture 11 , a chain mechanism 12 , a driving mechanism 13 and a first clamping mechanism 14 .

[0079] There are multiple battery cell fixing jigs 11, which are fixedly mounted on the chain mechanism 12 in sequence and move with the chain mechanism. After the battery cell is loaded and before the battery cell is unloaded, the battery cell is in a clamped state of the jig and will not deviate.

[0080] The driving mechanism 13 is transmission-connected with the chain mechanism 12 and is configured to drive the chain mechanism 12 to rotate. The rotating chain mechanism 12 drives the battery cell fixing fixture 11 to move cyclically.

[0081] The first clamping mechanism 14 is installed at the feeding end of the chain mechanism 12 , located on one side of the chain mechanism 12 , and is configured to open the battery cell fixing fixture 11 at the feeding end to fix the battery cell 100 to be fed into the battery cell fixing fixture 11 .

[0082] The battery cell tab cutting device 1 drives the battery cell 100 to move by rotating the chain, which can cyclically realize the loading and unloading of the battery cell 100, with high production efficiency and saving site space; the battery cell fixing fixture 11 is designed to be opened and closed under the drive of the clamping mechanism, which can realize the automation of loading and unloading of the battery cell 100 and improve efficiency.

[0083] Optionally, the battery cell loading unit 20 loads two battery cells each time, and the conveying unit 10 steps forward by two battery cells each time when conveying the battery cells, so as to increase the beat.

[0084] Optionally, a second clamping mechanism is provided at the unloading end of the chain mechanism 12, and the second clamping mechanism is used to open the battery cell fixing fixture 11 to unload the battery cell when the battery cell is unloaded. The empty fixture after unloading flows back to the loading position.

[0085] Figure 5-6 FIG. 1 is an optional embodiment of the battery cell fixing fixture 11. Figure 5 This is a stereogram of the fixture from one perspective. Figure 6 The battery cell fixing fixture 11 comprises a bottom plate 111 , a first clamping plate 112 , a second clamping plate 113 , a slide rail 114 , a clamping plate mounting block 115 , a tension spring 116 and a connector 117 .

[0086] The first clamping plate 112 is fixedly mounted on the bottom plate 111, the slide rail 114 is fixedly mounted on the bottom plate 111, the clamping plate mounting block 115 is movably mounted on the slide rail 114, the second clamping plate 113 is fixedly mounted on the clamping plate mounting block 115 and is opposite to the first clamping plate 112, and the tension spring 116 is installed between the bottom plate 111 and the clamping plate mounting block 115. A cover plate 118 is also installed above the tension spring 116 and the clamping plate mounting block 115, and the cover plate 118 is connected to the bottom plate 111 by bolts, and the cover plate 118 is used to carry the battery cell 100. The connector 117 is installed on the bottom plate 111, and is used to fix the battery cell fixing fixture 11 on the chain mechanism 12.

[0087] The tension spring 116 makes the second clamping plate 113 approach the first clamping plate 112, and the second clamping plate 113 approaches or moves away from the first clamping plate 112 under the drive of the first clamping mechanism 14. The battery cell fixing fixture 11 is in a clamped state under the action of the tension spring 116. When the clamping roller of the first clamping mechanism 14 is inserted into the fixture, the clamping plate opens; when the clamping roller of the first clamping mechanism 14 is withdrawn from the fixture, the clamping plate returns to the clamped state.

[0088] The battery cell fixing fixture 11 uses a slide rail 114 and a tension spring 116 to achieve the opening and closing function, and has a simple structure and low cost. The battery cell fixing fixture 11 is fixed on the chain through a connector 117, which is easy to install and disassemble.

[0089] Optionally, an inclined surface 1151 is provided on the clamping plate mounting block 115 , and the inclined surface 1151 is driven by the first clamping mechanism 14 to move the clamping plate mounting block 115 along the slide rail 114 to control the battery cell fixing fixture 11 to open.

[0090] By arranging the inclined surface 1151 on the clamping plate mounting block 115 of the battery cell fixing fixture 11, the opening and closing of the clamping plate can be realized, and the structure is simple and ingenious, and the processing is convenient.

[0091] Alternatively, if Figure 7 As shown, a guide rail 16 is installed on the chain mechanism 12, and a guide wheel 119 is installed on the battery cell fixing fixture 11. The guide wheel 119 is installed on the guide rail 16 and runs along the guide rail 16. There are four guide wheels 119 in total, divided into two pairs. The guide wheel 119 cooperates with the guide rail 16 on the conveying part 10 to ensure that the fixture will not deviate during movement. In order to facilitate adjustment and improve compatibility, the guide wheel 119 adopts an eccentric wheel, and the position of each pair of guide wheels is adjusted before being fixed. Figure 7 The connecting block 121 is used to connect with the connecting piece 117 to fix the battery cell fixing fixture 11 on the chain mechanism 12.

[0092] The guide rail 16 and the guide wheel 119 form a guiding mechanism for guiding the battery cell fixing fixture 11 to ensure that the battery cell fixing fixture 11 does not deviate during movement.

[0093] like Figure 8 , Fig. 9 As shown, an optional embodiment of the first clamping mechanism 14 includes an clamping cylinder 141, a roller mounting plate 142 and an clamping roller 143, the clamping roller 143 is mounted on the roller mounting plate 142, and the roller mounting plate 142 is mounted on the movable part of the clamping cylinder 141.

[0094] The clamping cylinder 141 drives the clamping roller 143 to move, and the clamping roller 143 cooperates with the clamping plate mounting block 115 to control the clamping plate of the battery cell fixing fixture 11 to open.

[0095] The clamping mechanism adopts a clamping cylinder 141 and a clamping roller 143, which has a simple structure and low cost.

[0096] Optionally, the conveying unit 10 further includes a tidying mechanism 15 disposed at the feeding end of the chain mechanism 12. Figure 8 , Fig. 9 As shown, the aligning mechanism 15 is installed at the post-process station of the first clamping mechanism 14, and is used to align the battery cells 100 on the battery cell fixing fixture 11. Figure 3 As shown, there are two tidying mechanisms 15 , which are respectively located on both sides of the chain mechanism 12 .

[0097] The aligning mechanism 15 includes an aligning cylinder 151 and an aligning plate 152. The aligning plate 152 is mounted on the movable part of the aligning cylinder 151. The aligning plate 152 is provided with a notch 153 opposite to the pole piece of the battery cell 100. The aligning cylinder 151 drives the aligning plate 152 to move. The aligning plate 152 is used to align the battery cells after the battery cell loading part 20 puts down the battery cells.

[0098] By setting a regularization mechanism 15 at the feeding end of the conveying part 10 to regularize the battery cells, the spatial position of the battery cells is guaranteed, which facilitates the accuracy of subsequent cutting; a notch 153 is opened on the regularization plate 152 to avoid interference between the regularization plate 152 and the battery cell electrodes.

[0099] Optionally, the aligning mechanism 15 includes two aligning plates 152 , and the two aligning plates act on two adjacent battery cells 100 simultaneously.

[0100] The aligning mechanism 15 uses two aligning plates 152 to align two battery cells at the same time, which can improve the aligning efficiency.

[0101] Optionally, another first clamping mechanism 14 may be provided at the subsequent workstation of the tidying mechanism 15. The first clamping mechanism 14 is provided in two sets, and two battery cells 100 may be loaded each time, thereby improving the loading efficiency of the battery cells 100.

[0102] The action steps of the first clamping mechanism 14 and the aligning mechanism 15 are as follows: the clamping roller 143 is first inserted into the battery cell fixing fixture 11, the fixture is opened, the battery cell loading part 20 places the battery cell on the fixture, and the aligning plate 152 then aligns the battery cell. After the aligning is completed, the clamping roller 143 is withdrawn and the aligning plate returns to its original position.

[0103] Fig.10 FIG. 2 shows an optional embodiment of the battery cell loading portion 20. Fig.10 The battery cell loading part 20 includes two groups of loading suction cups 21 ; the two groups of loading suction cups 21 load two battery cells 100 at the same time.

[0104] The cell loading part 20 includes a loading beam 22, a loading transverse movement mechanism 23, a loading lifting mechanism 24 and a loading suction cup 21; the loading suction cup 21 is mounted on the loading lifting mechanism 24, the loading lifting mechanism 24 is mounted on the loading transverse movement mechanism 23, and the loading transverse movement mechanism 23 is mounted on the loading beam 22. The loading transverse movement mechanism 23 drives the loading lifting mechanism 24 to move horizontally, and the loading lifting mechanism 24 drives the loading suction cup 21 to move up and down, and the loading suction cup 21 is used to absorb the cell 100.

[0105] The battery cell loading part 20 adopts a lateral movement mechanism in cooperation with a lifting mechanism, which can flexibly adjust the spatial position of the battery cell 100 to facilitate loading.

[0106] Optionally, the battery cell feeding part 20 uses two feeding mechanisms, each of which includes two groups of feeding suction cups 21, and each feeding mechanism sucks two battery cells 100 each time, which can improve the feeding efficiency. The two feeding mechanisms are installed on the same mounting plate 25, and the mounting plate 25 is driven by the feeding transverse movement mechanism 23, and the feeding suction cup 21 is moved up and down by the feeding lifting mechanism 24. Optionally, the feeding transverse movement mechanism 23 is driven by a motor, and the feeding lifting mechanism 24 is driven by a cylinder.

[0107] Figure 11-12 FIG. 1 is an optional embodiment of the tab flattening portion 30. Fig.11 is a three-dimensional diagram of the component. Fig.12 The tab leveling part 30 includes a pressure plate seat 31, a lower pressure plate 32, an upper pressure block 33 and a pressure block driving mechanism 34. The lower pressure plate 32 is fixedly mounted on the pressure plate seat 31. The upper pressure block 33 is connected to the pressure block driving mechanism 34 and is located above the lower pressure plate 32. The pressure block driving mechanism 34 drives the upper pressure block 33 to move relative to the lower pressure plate 32.

[0108] The tab leveling portion 30 adopts a pressing block and a pressing plate structure, which is simple, reliable and low in cost.

[0109] Optionally, the pressing block driving mechanism 34 adopts a cylinder, and the cylinder controls the upper pressing block 33 to press down to flatten the pole ear, and each time the flattening step further delivers two battery cells.

[0110] Optionally, a manual adjustment mechanism 35 is further provided below the pressure plate seat 31. The manual adjustment mechanism 35 includes a hand wheel, a screw mechanism, a slider and a slide rail. The pressure plate seat 31 is slidably fitted on the slide rail through the slider, the hand wheel is connected to the screw mechanism, and the screw mechanism is installed on the pressure plate seat 31. The hand wheel is turned to drive the pressure plate seat 31 to slide along the slide rail through the screw mechanism, thereby adjusting the position of the pressure plate seat 31.

[0111] The manual adjustment mechanism 35 is manually adjusted, and the position accuracy requirement is not high. It can be locked after the adjustment is completed.

[0112] Figure 13-14 An optional embodiment of the cutting portion 50 is shown. Fig.13 is a three-dimensional diagram of the component. Fig.14 The cutting unit 50 includes a translation mechanism 51, a cutting mechanism 52 and a pressing mechanism 53; the cutting mechanism 52 is installed on the translation mechanism 51, and the pressing mechanism 53 is installed on the cutting mechanism 52; the translation mechanism 51 drives the cutting mechanism 52 to translate to the cutting station, the pressing mechanism 53 is used to press the tab 101 to be cut, and the cutting mechanism 52 is used to cut the tab 101.

[0113] Optionally, the pressing mechanism 53 includes a pressing plate and a pressing cylinder, and the pressing cylinder drives the pressing plate to move to press the tab before cutting.

[0114] The cutting unit 50 moves the cutting mechanism 52 to the position of the tab through the translation mechanism 51, and presses the tab through the pressing mechanism 53 before cutting. The tab will not move during cutting, thereby improving the qualified rate of cutting.

[0115] Optionally, the cutting mechanism 52 includes a knife seat 521, an upper knife 522, a lower knife 523 and a knife driving mechanism 524. The lower knife 523 is fixedly mounted on a lower die seat 526, and the lower die seat 526 is fixedly mounted on the knife seat 521. The upper knife 522 is fixedly mounted on an upper die seat 525, and the upper die seat 525 is connected to the knife driving mechanism 524 and is located above the lower knife 523, and the knife driving mechanism 524 is mounted on the knife seat 521. The knife driving mechanism 524 drives the upper knife 522 to move relative to the lower knife 523. Optionally, the knife driving mechanism 524 adopts a cylinder.

[0116] The cutting mechanism 52 adopts an upper cutting knife 522 and a lower cutting knife 523 to cooperate with each other, and has a simple structure. In addition, the lower cutting knife 523 is fixed and has high stability.

[0117] Optionally, the knife seat 521 is mounted on a vertically extending adjustment rail 54, and the adjustment rail 54 is mounted on the translation mechanism 51. The height of the cutting mechanism 52 is adjusted in advance, and the knife seat 521 is locked on the adjustment rail 54 after the adjustment is completed.

[0118] Optionally, the translation mechanism 51 includes a translation motor 511 and a translation rail 512, and the cutting mechanism 52 is installed on the translation rail 512. The translation motor 511 controls the cutting mechanism 52 to slide on the translation rail 512 and move a corresponding distance according to the tab position information fed back by the front-end positioning unit 40.

[0119] Optionally, a hopper 55 is installed below the lower cutter 523 to collect the cut tab material.

[0120] When the cutting part 50 is in the original state, the upper cutter 522 and the lower cutter 523 are separated with a gap between them. After the translation motor 511 drives the cutting mechanism 52 to move into place, the clamping mechanism 53 first presses the pole ear, and the cutter driving mechanism 524 drives the upper die seat 525 to move downward, so that the upper cutter 522 moves in the direction of the lower cutter 523 to achieve cutting. After the cutting is completed, the upper die seat 525 rises, and the pressure block of the clamping mechanism 53 rises again.

[0121] Alternatively, if Figure 1 , Figure 2As shown, the cutting parts 50 include two, and the two cutting parts 50 are arranged in sequence along the conveying direction of the conveying part 10. The two cutting parts 50 respectively and sequentially cut the tabs 101 of one of the two adjacent battery cells 100 that have not been cut according to the positioning result of the positioning part 40.

[0122] Two cutting parts 50 are used, so that two battery cells 100 can be processed at one time, thereby improving the cutting efficiency.

[0123] Optionally, the cutting unit 50 is divided into two pairs of cutting devices, each pair of cutting devices cuts the tabs on both sides of a battery cell. For example, the first pair of cutting devices cuts the tabs of the second battery cell, and after the conveying unit 10 steps forward, the second pair of cutting devices cuts the tabs of the first battery cell.

[0124] like Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, an optional embodiment of the unloading part 70 includes a detection part 60, a qualified part buffer part 74, a defective part storage part 73, a first unloading part 71 and a second unloading part 72.

[0125] The detection unit 60 detects the tab 101 of the battery cell 100 cut by the cutting unit 50 , and detects the cutting condition of the tab 101 .

[0126] The qualified component buffer unit 74 is used to temporarily store the battery cells 100 that have passed the inspection by the inspection unit 60 , and the defective component storage unit 73 is used to store the battery cells 100 that have failed the inspection by the inspection unit 60 .

[0127] The first unloading section 71 is used to classify the cut battery cells, and is configured to transport some of the battery cells 100 on the conveying section 10 that have passed the inspection by the inspection section 60 to the qualified parts buffer section 74, and to transport the battery cells 100 on the conveying section 10 that have failed the inspection by the inspection section 60 to the defective parts storage section 73.

[0128] The second unloading part 72 is used to transport qualified parts to the next workstation, and is configured to transport the qualified battery cells 100 on the conveying part 10 and the battery cells 100 on the qualified parts buffer part 74 to the next workstation. In this embodiment, the second unloading part 72 is in the form of a robot + suction cup.

[0129] The inspection unit 60 is arranged at the blanking unit to detect whether the tab cutting is qualified online, thereby improving the compactness of the arrangement. Optionally, the inspection unit 60 performs visual inspection by a camera.

[0130] The unloading part 70 adopts two types, which respectively handle qualified products and unqualified products, so as to facilitate the subsequent process. When the unloading part 70 discharges materials, the unloading position is different according to different situations. When both battery cells are qualified, the second unloading part 72 moves all qualified battery cells away at the unloading position of the conveying part 10; when unqualified products appear, the first unloading part 71 moves the unqualified battery cells to the defective parts storage part 73, and moves the qualified battery cells to the qualified parts buffer part 74. When the qualified parts buffer part 74 has enough qualified parts, the second unloading part 72 moves the qualified battery cells to the next workstation at the unloading position of the qualified parts buffer part 74.

[0131] Fig.15 The figure shows an optional embodiment of the first unloading part 71. The first unloading part 71 includes an unloading cross beam 711, an unloading transverse movement mechanism 712, an unloading lifting mechanism 713 and an unloading suction cup 714; the unloading suction cup 714 is installed on the unloading lifting mechanism 713, the unloading lifting mechanism 713 is installed on the unloading transverse movement mechanism 712, and the unloading transverse movement mechanism 712 is installed on the unloading cross beam 711. The unloading transverse movement mechanism 712 drives the unloading lifting mechanism 713 to move horizontally, and the unloading lifting mechanism 713 drives the unloading suction cup 714 to move up and down, and the unloading suction cup 714 is used to suck up the battery cell 100. Optionally, the unloading suction cup 714 sucks up two battery cells 100 each time, regardless of whether there are unqualified parts among them.

[0132] The first unloading part 71 adopts a lateral movement mechanism in cooperation with a lifting mechanism, which can flexibly adjust the spatial position of the battery cell to facilitate unloading.

[0133] Optionally, the material unloading transverse movement mechanism 712 adopts a motor, and the material unloading lifting mechanism 713 adopts a cylinder.

[0134] Optionally, according to the actual material discharging and conveying conditions, a rotating cylinder can be installed to facilitate the subsequent conveying of the battery cells.

[0135] Fig.16 The figure shows an optional embodiment of the defective parts storage unit 73. The defective parts storage unit 73 includes a conveyor belt 731, which is driven by a motor to output defective cells. The motor is mounted on a motor mounting seat 732.

[0136] Figure 17-18 FIG. 1 is an optional embodiment of the qualified parts buffer 74. Figure 1 It is a stereogram of the component from one perspective. Fig.18This is a stereogram of the component from another perspective. The qualified parts cache section 74 includes a cache platform 741, a cache transport mechanism 742 and a cache translation mechanism 743; the cache platform 741 is provided with a plurality of compartments for caching the battery cells 100 and placing each battery cell separately; the cache translation mechanism 743 is installed at the lower part of the cache platform 741, and the cache transport mechanism 742 is installed on the cache translation mechanism 743; the cache transport mechanism 742 is raised to lift up the battery cell 100 on the cache platform 741, and after the cache translation mechanism 743 drives the cache transport mechanism 742 to move horizontally to a position, the cache transport mechanism 742 is lowered to place the battery cell 100 on the cache platform 741.

[0137] The qualified parts buffer section 74 combines a transport mechanism with a translation mechanism, which can gather a predetermined number of finished products together for easy transportation to the subsequent process.

[0138] The qualified parts cache section 74 is mainly used to cache the qualified parts when one of the battery cells sucked by the first unloading section 71 is a qualified part and the other is an unqualified part. When the qualified parts reach the required quantity, the second unloading section 72 takes away the two battery cells.

[0139] Optionally, the cache transport mechanism 742 includes a top plate and a lifting cylinder; the cache translation mechanism 743 includes a drive motor and a slide rail, and the drive motor drives the transport mechanism to move forward and backward along the slide rail. When the qualified parts cache section 74 is working, the lifting cylinder rises, the top plate lifts the battery cell, and the drive motor drives the cache transport mechanism 742 to move forward. After it is in place, the lifting cylinder descends to place the battery cell on the previous cache position.

[0140] The present invention also provides a method for cutting a cell tab using the cell tab cutting device 1. The method comprises: opening the cell fixing fixture 11 at the loading station of the chain mechanism 12, placing the cell 100 in the cell fixing fixture 11 and clamping and fixing the cell 100; driving the chain mechanism 12 to sequentially transport the cell 100 from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station; leveling the tab 101 of the cell 100 at the tab leveling station; positioning the tab 101 of the cell 100 at the positioning station to obtain positioning information; cutting the tab 101 of the cell 100 according to the positioning information at the cutting station; unloading the cell 100 after the tab 101 is cut from the unloading station.

[0141] The battery cell tab cutting method drives the battery cell 100 to move by the rotation of the chain, and can cyclically realize the loading and unloading of the battery cell 100, thereby improving production efficiency.

[0142] Optionally, the method also includes: loading two battery cells 100 to the loading station side by side at the same time; transporting the battery cells 100 from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station in sequence, including: transporting the two battery cells 100 from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station in sequence at the same time; the cutting station includes a first cutting station and a second cutting station, and the tabs 101 of the battery cells 100 are cut at the cutting station according to the positioning information, including: cutting one of the two battery cells 100 at the first cutting station, and cutting the other of the two battery cells 100 at the second cutting station.

[0143] By loading two battery cells 100 side by side at the same time, two battery cells 100 can be processed at one time, which can increase production efficiency exponentially.

[0144] Optionally, the battery cell 100 after the tab 101 is cut is unloaded from the unloading station, including: testing the two battery cells 100 after the tab 101 is cut to obtain test information; when the test information indicates that the tabs 101 of the two battery cells 100 are both qualified, the two battery cells 100 are unloaded to the back-end station; when the test information indicates that the tabs 101 of the two battery cells 100 are both unqualified, the two battery cells 100 are unloaded to the defective parts storage unit 73; when the test information indicates that the tabs 101 of the two battery cells 100 are both unqualified, the two battery cells 100 are unloaded to the defective parts storage unit 73; When it is indicated that the pole tab 101 of one of the two battery cells 100 is qualified in cutting and the pole tab 101 of the other battery cell 100 is unqualified in cutting, the battery cell 100 with the unqualified pole tab 101 is unloaded to the defective part storage section 73, and the battery cell 100 with the qualified pole tab 101 is unloaded to the qualified part cache section 74. When the battery cells 100 cached in the qualified part cache section 74 reaches a predetermined even number, the battery cells 100 cached in the qualified part cache section 74 are unloaded to the downstream workstation.

[0145] According to the different quality conditions of the two battery cells 100 after the tabs 101 are cut, different unloading methods are adopted respectively, so that the unloading can be carried out in an orderly manner, which is convenient for subsequent processing and improves the unloading efficiency.

[0146] The present invention has been described in sufficient detail with certain particularity. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the description in the embodiments is merely exemplary, and all changes made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention. The scope of protection claimed by the present invention is defined by the claims, rather than by the above description in the embodiments.

Claims

1. A battery cell tab cutting device, characterized in that: The battery cell tab cutting device comprises a conveying part, a battery cell loading part, a tab leveling part, a positioning part, a cutting part and a unloading part, wherein: The battery cell loading part is arranged at the loading end of the conveying part to place the battery cell on the loading end of the conveying part; The conveying part drives the battery cells placed at the loading end to pass through the tab leveling part, the positioning part, the cutting part and finally to the unloading part in sequence; The tab flattening unit flattens the tabs of the battery cell that is transported by the transport unit to the tab flattening unit; The positioning part positions the tab of the battery cell after being flattened by the tab flattening part; The cutting unit cuts the tabs of the battery cell delivered to the cutting unit according to the positioning information of the positioning unit; The unloading part unloads the battery cells from the unloading end of the conveying part; in: The conveying part includes a battery cell fixing jig, a chain mechanism, a driving mechanism and a first clamping mechanism; there are multiple battery cell fixing jigs, which are fixedly installed on the chain mechanism in sequence; the driving mechanism is transmission-connected to the chain mechanism and is configured to drive the chain mechanism to rotate, and the rotating chain mechanism drives the battery cell fixing jig to move in a circle; the first clamping mechanism is installed at the loading end of the chain mechanism, and is configured to open the battery cell fixing jig at the loading end to fix the battery cell to be loaded in the battery cell fixing jig.

2. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery cell fixing jig includes a base plate, a first clamping plate, a second clamping plate, a slide rail, a clamping plate mounting block, a tension spring and a connecting piece; the first clamping plate is fixedly mounted on the base plate, the slide rail is fixedly mounted on the base plate, the clamping plate mounting block is movably mounted on the slide rail, the second clamping plate is fixedly mounted on the clamping plate mounting block and is opposite to the first clamping plate, the tension spring is mounted between the base plate and the clamping plate mounting block, and the connecting piece is mounted on the base plate and is used to fix the battery cell fixing jig on the chain mechanism; the tension spring makes the second clamping plate approach the first clamping plate, and the second clamping plate approaches or moves away from the first clamping plate under the drive of the first clamping mechanism.

3. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The clamping plate mounting block is provided with an inclined surface, and the inclined surface enables the clamping plate mounting block to move along the slide rail under the driving of the first clamping mechanism.

4. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A guide rail is installed on the chain mechanism, a guide wheel is installed on the battery cell fixing fixture, and the guide wheel is installed on the guide rail and runs along the guide rail.

5. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first clamping mechanism comprises a clamping cylinder, a roller mounting plate and a clamping roller, wherein the clamping roller is mounted on the roller mounting plate, and the roller mounting plate is mounted on the movable part of the clamping cylinder.

6. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery cell loading part comprises two groups of loading suction cups; the two groups of loading suction cups load two battery cells at the same time.

7. The battery cell tab cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The unloading section includes an inspection section, a qualified part cache section, a defective part storage section, a first unloading section and a second unloading section; the inspection section inspects the tabs of the battery cells cut by the cutting section, the qualified part cache section is used to temporarily store the battery cells that have passed the inspection by the inspection section, and the defective part storage section is used to store the battery cells that have failed the inspection by the inspection section; the first unloading section is configured to transport some of the battery cells on the conveying section that have passed the inspection by the inspection section to the qualified part cache section, and to transport the battery cells on the conveying section that have failed the inspection by the inspection section to the defective part storage section; the second unloading section is configured to transport some of the battery cells on the conveying section that have passed the inspection by the inspection section and the battery cells on the qualified part cache section to the downstream workstation.

8. The battery cell tab cutting device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The two cutting parts are arranged in sequence along the conveying direction of the conveying part, and the two cutting parts respectively and sequentially cut the tabs of one of the two adjacent battery cells that have not been cut according to the positioning result of the positioning part.

9. A method for cutting a battery cell tab, characterized in that: The method adopts the battery cell tab cutting device as claimed in claim 1, and the method comprises: Open the battery cell fixing jig at the chain mechanism loading station, place the battery cell in the battery cell fixing jig and clamp and fix the battery cell; Drive the chain mechanism to transport the battery cells from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station in sequence; Leveling the tabs of the battery cell at the tab leveling station; Positioning the tab of the battery cell at the positioning station to obtain positioning information; Cutting the tabs of the battery cell at the cutting station according to the positioning information; The battery cells after the tabs have been cut are unloaded from the unloading station.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The method further comprises: loading two battery cells to the loading station side by side at the same time; The method of sequentially conveying the battery cells from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station comprises: simultaneously conveying the two battery cells from the loading station to the tab leveling station, the positioning station, the cutting station and the unloading station in sequence; The cutting station includes a first cutting station and a second cutting station, and the cutting station cuts the tabs of the battery cell according to the positioning information, including: cutting one of the two battery cells at the first cutting station, and cutting the other of the two battery cells at the second cutting station.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The step of unloading the battery cell after the tabs are cut from the unloading station comprises: Testing the two battery cells after the tabs are cut to obtain testing information; When the detection information indicates that the cutting of the two battery cell tabs is qualified, the two battery cells are unloaded to the downstream workstation; When the detection information indicates that the cutting of the two battery cell tabs is unqualified, the two battery cells are unloaded to a defective parts storage unit; When the detection information indicates that the tab cutting of one of the two battery cells is qualified and the tab cutting of the other battery cell is unqualified, the battery cell with unqualified tab cutting is unloaded to the defective part storage section, and the battery cell with qualified tab cutting is unloaded to the qualified part cache section; when the battery cells cached in the qualified part cache section reaches a predetermined even number, the battery cells cached in the qualified part cache section are unloaded to the downstream workstation.

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