Packing method for soft package battery tab

Abstract

The application provides a soft package battery cell tab bending method, a horizontal distance value from a camera zero point to a bending servo zero point is obtained in a debugging stage, and the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is used for calculating a distance to be moved of a bending tool in the case of different tab bending sizes in a subsequent bending process. The calculation is simple and fast, and the bending servo can directly drive the bending tool to reach a set tab bending size according to the distance to be moved of the bending tool, so that the problems of complex program logic design, inability to flexibly call data and the need for multiple positioning and calibration during the production process of the soft package battery cell tab bending of different lengths are solved, a new program logic is fundamentally reconstructed, the tab bending operation is more convenient and fast, and the production efficiency is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of battery production, in particular to a soft package battery cell tab bending method. BACKGROUND

[0002] A battery is a device capable of generating electric energy, such as the currently widely used storage battery, which is a battery that can be used twice, such as a lithium ion battery in a mobile phone, a notebook computer, etc. In the production process of the storage battery, the storage battery generally includes a body and positive and negative tabs led out from different positions of the body. Since the positive and negative tabs are led out from different positions, they are not in the same plane. In order to facilitate the packaging into a shell and avoid the risk of short circuit caused by the contact between the tabs and the aluminum shell due to vibration during the later stage of production, transportation, and use, the positive and negative tabs need to be bent during the production process. However, the development of battery production technology is becoming faster and faster, and the current production requirements have changed greatly compared to the past. Many enterprises now have specific requirements for the length of the battery tab bending, and different lengths of battery tab bending are needed to meet the needs of different products.

[0003] There are two common methods for tab bending. One is to ensure the stability of the product and manually bend the tab to improve the accuracy of the tab bending. The size of the soft package battery cell tab bending is ensured by the method of manual detection by caliper measurement. The other is to use a high-precision camera in cooperation with a bending mechanism for automatic bending. The first conventional method has high requirements for design difficulty and installation precision, and requires high stability of incoming materials. It cannot provide timely feedback and adjustment for abnormal installation problems and inconsistent tab bending lengths that occur during production, and manual tab bending has the problem of low yield. The second conventional method can provide feedback and adjustment for abnormal installation problems and inconsistent tab bending lengths of soft package battery tabs that occur during production, but after changing the tab bending length, the camera needs to be calibrated again, the program logic design is complex, and flexible data calling cannot be performed, which affects production efficiency.

[0004] In summary, in the prior art, battery tab bending can be performed by manual bending or automatic bending by a mechanical device. However, manual tab bending has the problem of low yield, and automatic tab bending by a mechanical device has the problem of being unable to flexibly change the tab bending length during continuous bending. Furthermore, after changing the tab bending length, the subsequent program logic design is complex, which affects production efficiency. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides a soft package battery cell tab bending method to solve the problem of complex program logic design and inability to flexibly call data when bending tabs of different lengths during production.

[0006] One of the concepts of the present application is to provide a soft package battery cell tab bending method, which obtains the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point through debugging and calculation, and calculates the distance to be moved of the bending knife in the bending mechanism under different bending lengths according to the horizontal distance value, so as to solve the problems of being unable to flexibly change the tab bending length and needing to position the battery cell multiple times in the continuous bending process.

[0007] Specifically, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point can be continuously used in the subsequent bending operation process without the need for multiple positioning monitoring, and the horizontal distance value is used to calculate the distance to be moved of the bending knife under different bending lengths, which is simple and convenient to calculate and simple and fast to program.

[0008] Further, the concept of the present application also lies in that the soft package battery cell tab bending method provided by the present application calculates the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point through a debugging stage.

[0009] Specifically, the camera zero point is obtained by the camera shooting at a fixed point to obtain the bending operation area, but since the bending servo mechanism is not in the camera field of view, and in order to ensure the calculation accuracy, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is calculated through a debugging, and the debugging stage is a bending operation of the battery cell tab in the camera field of view, and the process of obtaining the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is as follows:

[0010] A reference value of the tab bending size is set;

[0011] A reference position of the battery cell edge is obtained;

[0012] The actual position of the battery cell edge is the horizontal distance value from the battery cell edge captured in the camera field of view to the camera zero point;

[0013] The second end position of the bending knife is obtained through debugging;

[0014] The horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is calculated according to the reference value of the tab bending size, the reference position of the battery cell edge, and the second end position.

[0015] The reference value of the tab bending size is the length value of the tab bending size set in the debugging stage, which is the length of the connection part between the tab and the battery cell after the tab is bent, and the tab bending size is different for different models, different numbers, and different products of the soft package battery cell tab.

[0016] The edge of the battery cell is a characteristic edge of the battery cell that is easily captured by the camera, so the reference position of the edge of the battery cell is the horizontal distance value of the characteristic edge in the field of view of the camera to the zero point of the camera, and the reference position of the edge of the battery cell is obtained by camera capture, so there may be a difference from the actual distance, which needs to be converted into the actual length to facilitate calculation, and the calculation is generally converted by the camera capture itself after capture;

[0017] The second end position of the folding knife is the horizontal distance value of the folding knife to the bending servo zero point under the requirement of the reference value of the tab bending size in the debugging stage.

[0018] Further, the sum of the reference value of the tab bending size, the reference position of the edge of the battery cell, and the reference position of the folding knife is equal to the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point.

[0019] Further, the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point can be used to calculate the distance to be moved of the folding knife in the bending mechanism under different tab bending sizes in the subsequent tab bending process, solving the problems of real-time calibration of the camera and multiple camera shooting caused by different tab bending sizes in the bending process, fundamentally reconstructing the program logic of the tab bending link, and greatly increasing the production efficiency.

[0020] Further, the concept of the present application is also to return the bending mechanism to the zero position after bending is completed, to ensure the calculation accuracy in the subsequent bending process.

[0021] The folding knife returns to the zero position after each bending operation is completed, so the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is unchanged in the subsequent bending process, ensuring that the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point can be used continuously in the subsequent bending process, solving the problem of being unable to flexibly call data.

[0022] Further, the concept of the present application is also to calculate the distance to be moved of the folding knife according to the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point in the tab bending process after the debugging stage, and to calculate the first end position of the folding knife according to the distance to be moved of the folding knife; by moving the folding knife at the first end position upward or downward, the tab is bent at the bending size, and the position of the edge of the battery cell is determined each time, so that the moving distance of the folding knife is obtained by calculation, which is simple and convenient, and does not need to be positioned multiple times.

[0023] Specifically, the actual position of the edge of the battery cell is obtained, and a given value of the tab bending size is set as needed.

[0024] The actual position of the cell sealing edge is the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending size is the length value of the tab bending size set in this bending process.

[0025] According to the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, the actual position of the cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending size, the to-be-moved distance of the bending knife is calculated.

[0026] The to-be-moved distance of the bending knife is obtained by subtracting the given value of the tab bending size from the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, and then subtracting the actual position of the cell sealing edge.

[0027] According to the to-be-moved distance of the bending knife, the first end position of the bending knife is calculated. The first end position of the bending knife is the end position reached by the bending knife after moving the to-be-moved distance of the bending knife in the bending operation except the debugging stage, and the bending operation is performed at the end position.

[0028] The tab is bent at the bending size by moving the bending knife at the first end position upward or downward.

[0029] Based on the above inventive concept, the present application provides a soft-pack cell tab bending method, which comprises:

[0030] In the debugging stage, the camera zero point position is obtained, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is obtained through debugging and calculation, and the bending servo zero point is the start position of the bending knife.

[0031] In the to-be-bent stage, the actual position of the cell sealing edge is obtained, and the given value of the tab bending size is set as needed.

[0032] According to the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, the actual position of the cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending size, the to-be-moved distance of the bending knife is calculated. According to the to-be-moved distance of the bending knife, the first end position of the bending knife is calculated. The tab is bent at the bending size by moving the bending knife at the first end position upward or downward.

[0033] In some embodiments, the method further comprises the following steps before presetting a reference line on the tab continuous bending operation station:

[0034] The positioning mechanism centers the soft-pack cell.

[0035] The conveying line transports the centered soft-pack cell to the bending operation area.

[0036] The bending operation area is a soft package battery cell tab bending station. The above steps are used to ensure that the directions of the incoming soft package battery cells are the same, facilitating subsequent calculation.

[0037] In some embodiments, after the soft package battery cell reaches the camera shooting area, it is centered again. This centering makes the central axis of the soft package battery cell tab coincide with the central axis of the bending mechanism, facilitating the bending mechanism to directly bend the soft package battery cell tab, reducing the number of positioning, and increasing the production efficiency.

[0038] In some embodiments, the values of the tab bending lengths of a group of battery cells can be set all at once in the control panel of the control device. The bending method provided in the scheme can bend tabs of different lengths in battery cell groups with different numbers, and can continuously bend tabs of different sizes, solving the problem of flexible data calling in the continuous bending process.

[0039] In some embodiments, the bending mechanism is provided with a displacement sensor, and the distance to be moved of the bending knife in the debugging stage can be obtained through the displacement sensor.

[0040] Through the above scheme, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is obtained in the debugging stage, which is used to calculate the distance to be moved of the bending knife in the case of different tab bending sizes in the subsequent bending process. The calculation is simple and fast, and the bending servo can directly drive the bending knife to reach the set tab bending size according to the distance to be moved of the bending knife, thus solving the problems of complex program logic design, inability to flexibly call data, and the need for multiple positioning and calibration in the production process when the soft package battery cell is bent with tabs of different lengths. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0041] The application will be described in further detail below in conjunction with the drawings and preferred embodiments, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that the drawings are only drawn for the purpose of explaining the preferred embodiments and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of the application. In addition, unless specifically indicated, the drawings only schematically show the composition or structure of the described objects and can include exaggerated displays, and the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

[0042] Figure 1 A flowchart of a soft package battery cell tab bending method;

[0043] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a soft package battery cell tab bending method;

[0044] Figure 3 A flowchart of calculating the horizontal distance value from the bending servo zero point to the camera zero point in a soft package battery cell tab bending method;

[0045] Figure 4 A flowchart of another soft package battery tab bending method;

[0046] Reference numeral explanation: 1, camera zero point; 2, bending servo zero point. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] The application will be described in further detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments. Figures 1 to 4 The application will be described in further detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments.

[0048] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the application clearer, the application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the application and not to limit the application.

[0049] The application provides a soft package battery tab bending method, specifically as shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 as shown:

[0050] Step S101: In the debugging stage, the position of the camera zero point 1 is obtained, and the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is obtained through debugging and calculation, and the bending servo zero point 2 is the starting position of the folding knife.

[0051] The camera zero point 1 is obtained by the camera shooting the bending operation area at the fixed point, but since the bending servo mechanism is not in the camera field of view, and in order to ensure the calculation accuracy, the horizontal distance value X4 from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is calculated through debugging, and the debugging stage is a bending operation of the battery tab in the camera field of view. Since the position of the bending servo mechanism is fixed and unchanged, and the camera zero point 1 is determined and will not be changed in the subsequent bending process, the horizontal distance value X4 from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is a fixed value.

[0052] If the position of the camera or the position of the bending servo mechanism changes, a debugging stage needs to be performed again to calculate the horizontal distance value X4 from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 after the position changes.

[0053] Step S102: In the waiting bending stage, the actual position of the battery edge is obtained, and the given value of the tab bending size is set as needed.

[0054] The actual position X1 of the battery edge is the horizontal distance value from the battery edge to the camera zero point in the camera field of view, and the given value X2 of the tab bending size is the length value of the tab bending size set in this bending process. The camera can be an industrial camera in this embodiment, and the given value X2 of the tab bending size is different for different models, different numbers and different products of soft package battery tabs due to different equipment requirements.

[0055] Step S103: According to the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2, the actual position of the cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending size, the distance to be moved of the cutter is calculated; according to the distance to be moved of the cutter, the first endpoint position of the cutter is calculated; by moving the cutter at the first endpoint position upward or downward, the tab is bent at the bending size.

[0056] Specifically, the distance to be moved X3 of the cutter is obtained by subtracting the given value X2 of the tab bending size from the horizontal distance value X4 from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2, and then subtracting the actual position X2 of the cell sealing edge.

[0057] After the cutter moves along a straight line to the first endpoint position, the tab is bent at the bending size by moving the cutter at the first endpoint position upward or downward.

[0058] The method for obtaining the distance from the bending mechanism to the reference line in the soft package cell tab bending method provided by the application is specifically as shown in Figure 3

[0059] Step S201: Set the reference value of the tab bending size.

[0060] Specifically, the reference value of the tab bending size is the length value of the tab bending size set in the debugging stage, the length value is the length of the connection part between the tab and the cell after the tab is bent, and the tab bending size is different for different models, different numbers, and different products of soft package cells due to different equipment requirements. The tab bending length is set on the control device, and the control device at least includes a control panel. The tab bending length can be manually or automatically set on the control panel according to requirements, and in the subsequent bending operation, the operation can be performed according to the tab bending length set before the bending operation, to realize automatic bending.

[0061] Step S202: Obtain the reference position of the cell sealing edge, which is the horizontal distance value from the captured cell sealing edge to the camera zero point 1 in the camera field of view.

[0062] The cell sealing edge is a characteristic edge of the cell that can be easily captured by the camera, and the reference position of the cell sealing edge is the horizontal distance value from the characteristic edge in the camera field of view to the camera zero point 1. The reference position of the cell sealing edge is obtained by camera capture, which may have a difference from the actual distance, and needs to be converted into an actual length for easy calculation. The above calculation is generally converted by the camera capture itself.

[0063] ​The camera is provided with an information processing unit, and the horizontal distance value of the cell sealing edge to the camera zero point 1 is obtained by the camera; after obtaining the horizontal distance value, the information processing unit converts the horizontal distance value of the cell sealing edge in the field of view of the camera to the actual distance, and the conversion ratio in the embodiment is 1:1.

[0064] Step S203: obtaining the second end position of the folding knife through debugging.

[0065] The second end position of the folding knife is the horizontal distance value of the folding knife to the bending servo zero point 2 under the requirement of the reference value of the tab bending size in the debugging stage, and the horizontal distance value in the embodiment is obtained by the displacement sensor arranged on the folding knife.

[0066] Step S204: calculating the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 according to the reference value of the tab bending size, the reference position of the cell sealing edge and the second end position.

[0067] The sum of the reference value of the tab bending size, the reference position of the cell sealing edge and the reference position of the folding knife is equal to the horizontal distance value of the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2.

[0068] The application provides a soft package cell tab bending method, and the method specifically comprises the steps of Figure 4 as shown in the figure:

[0069] Step S301: centering mechanism centers the soft package cell;

[0070] A first centering mechanism and a conveying line are arranged in front of the bending operation area, the first centering mechanism is used to ensure that the directions of the incoming soft package cells are the same, so as to facilitate subsequent operations, and the first centering mechanism is a mechanical arm in some embodiments.

[0071] Step S302: conveying line transports the centered soft package cell to the bending operation area;

[0072] The conveying line is provided with a groove matched with the soft package cell, the groove is used to fix the soft package cell, so as to avoid displacement and sliding of the soft package cell during transportation; the conveying line transports the centered cell to the bending operation area.

[0073] Further, in some embodiments, a second centering mechanism is arranged in the bending operation area, the second centering mechanism centers the soft package cell and the bending mechanism, so that the central axis of the tab of the soft package cell coincides with the central axis of the bending mechanism, and the bending mechanism bends the tab of the soft package cell.

[0074] Step S303: In the debugging stage, the camera zero point 1 position is obtained, and the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is obtained through debugging and calculation, and the bending servo zero point 2 is the starting position of the folding knife.

[0075] The camera zero point 1 is obtained by the camera shooting at the fixed point to obtain the bending operation area, but since the bending servo mechanism is not in the camera field of view, and in order to ensure the calculation accuracy, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is calculated through debugging, and the debugging stage is the bending operation of the electrode tab of the battery cell in the camera field of view. Since the position of the bending servo mechanism is fixed and unchanged, and the camera zero point 1 will not be changed in the subsequent bending process, the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 is a fixed value.

[0076] If the position of the camera or the bending servo mechanism changes, debugging needs to be performed again to calculate the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2 after the position changes.

[0077] Step S304: In the bending waiting stage, the actual position of the battery cell sealing edge is obtained, and the given value of the tab bending size is set as needed.

[0078] The actual position of the battery cell sealing edge is the horizontal distance value from the battery cell sealing edge to the camera zero point 1 in the camera field of view, and the given value of the tab bending size is the length value of the tab bending size set in this bending process. The camera in this embodiment can be an industrial camera, and the tab bending size is different for different models, different numbers, and different products of the soft package battery cell tab bending size.

[0079] Step S305: According to the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2, the actual position of the battery cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending size, the moving distance of the folding knife is calculated; according to the moving distance of the folding knife, the first end position of the folding knife is calculated; and by moving the folding knife at the first end position upward or downward, the tab is bent at the bending size.

[0080] Specifically, the moving distance of the folding knife is obtained by subtracting the given value of the tab bending size from the horizontal distance value from the camera zero point 1 to the bending servo zero point 2, and then subtracting the actual position of the battery cell sealing edge.

[0081] According to the moving distance of the folding knife, the first end position of the folding knife is calculated, and the first end position of the folding knife is the end position reached by the folding knife through the moving distance of the folding knife in the bending operation except the debugging stage. The folding knife performs bending operation at the end position.

[0082] After the folding knife moves along a straight line to the first end position, the lug is bent at the bending size by moving the folding knife at the first end position upward or downward.

[0083] The above has carried on the detailed introduction to the present application, the principle and the implementation mode of the present application are set forth by applying the specific example in this article, the above example is only for helping the understanding of the present application and the core thought. It should be pointed out that, for ordinary skilled person in the art, without departing from the principle of the present application, the present application can be improved and modified, these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the present application claims.

Claims

1. A method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell, characterized in that, include: During the debugging phase, the camera zero point position is obtained, and the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is obtained through debugging and calculation. The bending servo zero point is the starting position of the folding knife. During the bending stage, the actual position of the cell edge seal is obtained, and the given value of the tab bending dimension is set as needed; the actual position of the cell edge seal is the horizontal distance from the cell edge seal to the camera zero point within the camera's field of view; Based on the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, the actual position of the cell sealing edge, and the given value of the tab bending dimension, the distance to be moved by the bending blade is calculated; based on the distance to be moved by the bending blade, the first endpoint position of the bending blade is calculated; by moving the bending blade at the first endpoint position upward or downward, the tab is bent at the bending dimension. The horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is a fixed value.

2. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The horizontal distance value from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point obtained through debugging and calculation specifically includes: Set the baseline value for the tab bending dimension; Obtain the reference position of the cell sealing edge; The reference position of the cell sealing edge is the horizontal distance value from the cell sealing edge to the camera zero point captured in the camera's field of view; The second endpoint position of the folding knife is obtained through debugging; Based on the reference value of the tab bending dimension, the reference position of the cell sealing edge, and the second endpoint position, the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point is calculated.

3. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 2, characterized in that, The sum of the reference value of the tab bending dimension, the reference position of the cell sealing edge, and the reference position of the bending blade is equal to the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point.

4. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 2, characterized in that, The camera is equipped with an information processing unit; the horizontal distance value from the battery cell edge seal to the camera zero point is obtained by the camera; after obtaining the horizontal distance value, the information processing unit converts the horizontal distance value from the battery cell edge seal to the camera zero point within the camera's field of view into the actual distance.

5. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 4, characterized in that, The conversion ratio between the distance within the camera's field of view and the actual distance is 1:

1.

6. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of calculating the distance to be moved by the bending blade based on the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, the actual position of the battery cell edge seal, and the given value of the tab bending size specifically includes: The distance to be moved by the folding knife is obtained by subtracting the given value of the tab bending dimension from the horizontal distance from the camera zero point to the bending servo zero point, and then subtracting the actual position of the battery cell sealing edge.

7. The method for bending the tabs of a soft-pack battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, Prior to the debugging phase, the following is also included: The soft-pack battery cells are aligned using an alignment mechanism; The aligned pouch cells are transported to the bending operation area via a conveyor line.

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