A method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in battery swap stations

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method for emergency transportation of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station, comprising the following steps: step 1, a station control system receives a thermal runaway signal, and sends the thermal runaway signal to a PLC; step 2, the PLC receives the thermal runaway signal, feeds it back to the station control system for information verification, and analyzes the operating status of the battery swap station, and transmits and displays the thermal runaway battery position information through an HMI so that an action is executed or waiting for manual processing; the operating status includes: an emergency stop state, a manual mode, and an automatic mode; when the battery swap station is in an emergency stop state, a buzzer sounds, prompting an operator to contact the emergency stop, and the personnel evacuate and wait for manual processing; when the battery swap station is in manual mode, a buzzer sounds, and the personnel evacuate and switch to automatic mode; step 3, a command is issued to transport the thermal runaway battery; step 4, a smoke sensor on a water tank is judged, and if the smoke sensor is not triggered, wait for manual processing; if the smoke sensor is triggered, the battery enters water and waits for manual processing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical application field of battery swap stations, and in particular to a method for emergency transportation of thermal runaway batteries in battery swap stations. Background Art

[0002] During use, new energy vehicle batteries undergo multiple charging and discharging cycles, experience complex road traffic conditions, and are affected by internal and external factors. They may face the risk of thermal runaway in battery swap stations.

[0003] During operation, the battery swap station will store a number of batteries to be swapped. During battery charging and fully charged storage, the charger reads the battery status in real time through the power plug in the battery swap station. When an abnormal battery status is detected, the thermal runaway battery position is sent to the station control, which then sends the thermal runaway position information to the battery swap station PLC. The PLC transmits the alarm information to the HMI, releases a buzzer alarm, and prompts manual operation or automatic transportation of the thermal runaway battery to the fire water tank.

[0004] Currently, the transportation of thermal runaway batteries at battery swap stations mostly requires manual intervention or automatic transportation when the battery swap station is in automatic standby mode.

[0005] 1. Manually remove the thermal runaway battery. This method is complicated to operate. The operator may make mistakes due to nervousness in an emergency, and it is only applicable to manned battery swap stations.

[0006] 2. When transporting a thermal runaway battery in automatic standby mode (without battery replacement task), if a battery replacement is in progress or a fault occurs during the battery replacement process, emergency transport of the thermal runaway battery cannot be performed.

[0007] The above two types of emergency handling methods for thermal runaway batteries have long response times, and the cycle from thermal runaway triggering to handling completion is long, and timely manual intervention is required, which is not conducive to battery thermal runaway management and may even lead to further expansion of the accident. Summary of the invention

[0008] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides a method for emergency transportation of thermal runaway batteries at a battery swap station. According to the different operating states of the battery swap station: manual, emergency stop, automatic battery swapping, automatic ready state, and initialization state, the method reads the various moving mechanisms of the battery swap station: RGV, stacker, battery swap platform, water plug / electric plug in the battery compartment, and the main states: including the position of the battery swap mechanism, the battery swap operation process, the current alarm information of the battery swap station, etc., combined with the actual situation on site, while ensuring the safety of the operators, the emergency transportation path of the thermal runaway battery is reasonably and efficiently planned, and the thermal runaway battery is emergency transported in the event of equipment failure during battery swapping or non-battery emergency transportation mechanism, which greatly saves the waiting time for the thermal runaway battery and improves the operation safety of the battery swap station.

[0009] The technical solution of the present invention is: a method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station, comprising the following steps:

[0010] Step 1: The station control system receives the thermal runaway signal and sends the thermal runaway signal to the PLC, which monitors the downlink status of the station control data in real time;

[0011] Step 2: The PLC receives the thermal runaway signal, compares the thermal runaway signal with the monitoring signal, feeds it back to the station control system for information verification, and analyzes the operating status of the battery swap station. At the same time, the thermal runaway battery position information is transmitted and displayed through the HMI so that the action can be executed or wait for manual operation;

[0012] The operating states include: emergency stop state, manual mode and automatic mode;

[0013] When the battery swap station is in an emergency stop state, the buzzer sounds and the HMI displays the hot loss empty position and prompts the operator to contact the emergency stop. The personnel evacuate and wait for manual processing;

[0014] When the battery swap station is in manual mode, the buzzer sounds and the thermal runaway position is displayed through the HMI, personnel evacuate and switch to automatic mode;

[0015] Step 3: The command is issued to move the thermal runaway battery;

[0016] Step 4: Check the smoke sensor on the water tank. If the smoke sensor is not triggered, wait for manual intervention. If the smoke sensor is triggered, the battery is submerged in water and wait for manual intervention.

[0017] Furthermore, in step 2, the thermal runaway battery location information display includes: thermal runaway battery location information, equipment status, reset process, handling process and stacker operation sequence.

[0018] Furthermore, in step 2, the automatic mode includes: initialization state, automatic ready state, automatic battery replacement and paused. The four states of the automatic mode are further analyzed to facilitate action execution or wait for manual operation.

[0019] Further, the initialization status includes initialization and initialization failure;

[0020] When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization, the buzzer will sound an alarm, and while waiting for the initialization to be completed, proceed to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery;

[0021] When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization failure, the buzzer alarms and the initialization failure is analyzed: whether it is a stacker failure or a safety type failure. If the initialization failure is a stacker failure or a safety type failure alarm, wait for manual recovery; if the initialization failure is not a stacker failure or a non-safety type failure alarm, go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery.

[0022] Furthermore, the automatic ready state includes being inspected, being on standby, and being transferred;

[0023] When the battery swap station is under inspection, the buzzer will sound an alarm. Wait for the inspection to be completed and go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery.

[0024] When the battery swap station is in standby mode, the buzzer sounds an alarm and the process goes to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery;

[0025] When the battery swap station is in the warehouse transfer state, the buzzer alarms, all axes stop running, the current process of the stacker is copied to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process, and the warehouse transfer under the emergency handling reset process is completed. Enter step 3 to immediately carry out the thermal runaway battery transfer.

[0026] Furthermore, the emergency handling and resetting process includes the following steps: the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the lower position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork extends, the lifting mechanism lifts the outgoing battery to the high position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork retracts, the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the lower position of the incoming battery compartment, the battery is placed in the empty compartment, the warehouse transfer is completed, and step 3 is entered to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling.

[0027] Furthermore, when the battery swap station is in the automatic battery swap state, the movement of all axes except the unlocking gun is stopped, and the current process of the stacker is copied to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process;

[0028] The stacker status includes: battery taking stacker status reset, battery placing stacker status reset and idle;

[0029] The battery stacker state includes: taking batteries from the RGV, taking batteries full of battery compartments, and taking batteries from the cache compartment, waiting to take the batteries back to their original positions, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling;

[0030] The battery stacker status includes: placing batteries in the buffer bin, placing batteries on the RGV, and placing batteries in the battery bin, waiting for the battery placement to be completed, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling;

[0031] When the stacker is in an idle state, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation.

[0032] Further, the battery swap station is in a pause state, and the pause state includes: automatic readiness pause and automatic fault pause;

[0033] The automatic readiness pause includes: initialization pause, inspection pause and warehouse transfer pause;

[0034] The initialization is paused to determine whether it is a stacker initialization failure or a warehouse safety initialization failure. If not, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation; if so, wait for manual processing;

[0035] The inspection is suspended, waiting for manual processing;

[0036] The warehouse transfer is paused to determine whether it is a safety type failure of the stacker or the warehouse. If so, wait for manual processing; if not, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before the thermal runaway emergency transportation, wait for the warehouse transfer under the emergency transportation reset process to be completed, and enter step 3 to immediately transport the thermal runaway battery.

[0037] Furthermore, the automatic fault is paused to determine whether it is a safety type fault in the stacker or the warehouse; if so, wait for manual processing; if not, determine the status of the stacker, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before thermal runaway emergency transportation, and enter step 3 to immediately transport the thermal runaway battery.

[0038] Furthermore, the states of the stacker include: battery taking stacker state reset, battery placing stacker state reset and idle state.

[0039] The beneficial technical effects of the present invention are:

[0040] According to the different operating states of the battery swap station: manual, emergency stop, automatic battery swap, automatic ready state, initialization state, read the various moving mechanisms of the battery swap station: RGV, stacker, battery swap platform, water plug / electric plug in the battery compartment, main status: including the location of the battery swap mechanism, battery swap operation process, current alarm information of the battery swap station, etc., combined with the actual situation on site, while ensuring the safety of operators, reasonably and efficiently plan the emergency transportation path of the thermal runaway battery, perform emergency transportation of the thermal runaway battery in the event of equipment failure during battery swap or non-battery emergency transportation mechanism, greatly save the waiting time for thermal runaway batteries and improve the safety of battery swap station operation.

[0041] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of the present invention. In order to more clearly understand the technical means of the present invention and implement it according to the contents of the specification, the following is a detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the entire system architecture of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the operating state of a battery swap station during emergency transportation of a thermal runaway battery according to the present invention;

[0044] Figure 3It is a schematic diagram of the process flow in the emergency stop state of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the flow chart in the manual mode of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the process flow in the initialization state of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the process flow in the automatic ready state of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the emergency handling and resetting process of a thermal runaway battery of the present invention;

[0049] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of the process flow in the automatic battery replacement state of the present invention;

[0050] Fig. 9 It is a schematic diagram of the flow chart in the pause state of the present invention;

[0051] Fig.10 The figure is a schematic diagram of the secondary smoke sensing judgment process of the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0052] In order to more clearly understand the technical means of the present invention and implement it according to the contents of the specification, the specific implementation methods of the present invention are further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and examples. The following examples are used to illustrate the present invention but are not used to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0053] It should be noted that the terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the numbers used in this way can be interchanged where appropriate, so as to describe the embodiments of the present application described herein.

[0054] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "center", "up", "down", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inside", "outside", etc. indicate directions or positional relationships based on the directions or positional relationships described in the embodiments and shown in the accompanying drawings, or are directions or positional relationships in which the inventive product is usually placed when used. They are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction, and therefore should not be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0055] like Figure 1-10 As shown, the present invention specifically relates to a method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station, comprising the following steps:

[0056] Step 1: The station control system receives the thermal runaway signal and sends the thermal runaway signal to the PLC, which monitors the downlink status of the station control data in real time;

[0057] Step 2: The PLC receives the thermal runaway signal, compares the thermal runaway signal with the monitoring signal, feeds it back to the station control system for information verification, and analyzes the operating status of the battery swap station. At the same time, the thermal runaway battery position information is transmitted and displayed through the HMI so that the action can be executed or wait for manual operation;

[0058] The operating states include: emergency stop state, manual mode and automatic mode;

[0059] When the battery swap station is in an emergency stop state, the buzzer sounds and the HMI displays the hot loss empty position and prompts the operator to contact the emergency stop. The personnel evacuate and wait for manual processing;

[0060] When the battery swap station is in manual mode, the buzzer sounds and the thermal runaway position is displayed through the HMI, personnel evacuate and switch to automatic mode;

[0061] Furthermore, in step 2, the thermal runaway battery location information display includes: thermal runaway battery location information, equipment status, reset process, handling process and stacker operation sequence.

[0062] Furthermore, in step 2, the automatic mode includes: initialization state, automatic ready state, automatic battery replacement and paused. The four states of the automatic mode are further analyzed to facilitate action execution or wait for manual operation.

[0063] Further, the initialization status includes initialization and initialization failure;

[0064] When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization, the buzzer will sound an alarm, and while waiting for the initialization to be completed, proceed to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery;

[0065] When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization failure, the buzzer alarms and the initialization failure is analyzed: whether it is a stacker failure or a safety type failure. If the initialization failure is a stacker failure or a safety type failure alarm, wait for manual recovery; if the initialization failure is not a stacker failure or a non-safety type failure alarm, go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery.

[0066] Furthermore, the automatic ready state includes being inspected, being on standby, and being transferred;

[0067] When the battery swap station is under inspection, the buzzer will sound an alarm. Wait for the inspection to be completed and go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery.

[0068] When the battery swap station is in standby mode, the buzzer sounds an alarm and the process goes to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery;

[0069] When the battery swap station is in the warehouse transfer state, the buzzer alarms, all axes stop running, the current process of the stacker is copied to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process, and the warehouse transfer under the emergency handling reset process is completed. Enter step 3 to immediately carry out the thermal runaway battery transfer.

[0070] Furthermore, the emergency handling and resetting process includes the following steps: the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the lower position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork extends, the lifting mechanism lifts the outgoing battery to the high position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork retracts, the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the lower position of the incoming battery compartment, the battery is placed in the empty compartment, the warehouse transfer is completed, and step 3 is entered to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling.

[0071] Furthermore, when the battery swap station is in the automatic battery swap state, the movement of all axes except the unlocking gun is stopped, and the current process of the stacker is copied to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process;

[0072] The stacker status includes: battery taking stacker status reset, battery placing stacker status reset and idle;

[0073] The battery stacker state includes: taking batteries from the RGV, taking batteries full of battery compartments, and taking batteries from the cache compartment, waiting to take the batteries back to their original positions, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling;

[0074] The battery stacker status includes: placing batteries in the buffer bin, placing batteries on the RGV, and placing batteries in the battery bin, waiting for the battery placement to be completed, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling;

[0075] When the stacker is in an idle state, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation.

[0076] Further, the battery swap station is in a pause state, and the pause state includes: automatic readiness pause and automatic fault pause;

[0077] The automatic readiness pause includes: initialization pause, inspection pause and warehouse transfer pause;

[0078] The initialization is paused to determine whether it is a stacker initialization failure or a warehouse safety initialization failure. If not, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation; if so, wait for manual processing;

[0079] The inspection is suspended, waiting for manual processing;

[0080] The warehouse transfer is paused to determine whether it is a safety type failure of the stacker or the warehouse. If so, wait for manual processing; if not, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before the thermal runaway emergency transportation, wait for the warehouse transfer under the emergency transportation reset process to be completed, and enter step 3 to immediately transport the thermal runaway battery.

[0081] Furthermore, the automatic fault is paused to determine whether it is a safety type fault in the stacker or the warehouse; if so, wait for manual processing; if not, determine the status of the stacker, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before thermal runaway emergency transportation, and enter step 3 to immediately transport the thermal runaway battery.

[0082] Furthermore, the states of the stacker include: battery taking stacker state reset, battery placing stacker state reset and idle state.

[0083] Step 3: The command is issued to move the thermal runaway battery;

[0084] Step 4: Check the smoke sensor on the water tank. If the smoke sensor is not triggered, wait for manual intervention. If the smoke sensor is triggered, the battery is submerged in water and wait for manual intervention.

[0085] The above embodiments are only specific implementation methods of the present invention, which are used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention rather than to limit them. The protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, ordinary technicians in the field should understand that any technician familiar with the technical field can still modify the technical solutions recorded in the aforementioned embodiments within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention, or can easily think of changes, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein; and these modifications, changes or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, and should all be covered within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Step 1: The station control system receives the thermal runaway signal and sends the thermal runaway signal to the PLC, which monitors the downlink status of the station control data in real time; Step 2: The PLC receives the thermal runaway signal, compares the thermal runaway signal with the monitoring signal, and feeds it back to the station control system for information verification. It also analyzes the operating status of the battery swap station and transmits and displays the thermal runaway battery position information through the HMI so that the action can be executed or wait for manual operation. The operating states include: emergency stop state, manual mode and automatic mode; When the battery swap station is in an emergency stop state, the buzzer sounds and the HMI displays the hot loss empty position and prompts the operator to contact the emergency stop. The personnel evacuate and wait for manual processing; When the battery swap station is in manual mode, the buzzer sounds and the thermal runaway position is displayed through the HMI, personnel evacuate and switch to automatic mode; Step 3: The command is issued to move the thermal runaway battery; Step 4: Check the smoke sensor on the water tank. If the smoke sensor is not triggered, wait for manual processing. If the smoke sensor is triggered, the battery is submerged in water and wait for manual processing. In step 2, the automatic mode includes: initialization state, automatic ready state, automatic battery replacement and paused. The four states of the automatic mode are further analyzed to perform actions or wait for manual operation. The initialization status includes initialization and initialization failure; When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization, the buzzer will sound an alarm, and while waiting for the initialization to be completed, proceed to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery; When the battery swap station is in the process of initialization failure, the buzzer alarms and the initialization failure is analyzed: whether it is a stacker failure or a safety type failure. If the initialization failure is a stacker failure or a safety type failure alarm, wait for manual recovery; if the initialization failure is not a stacker failure or a non-safety type failure alarm, go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery.

2. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step 2, the thermal runaway battery location information display includes: thermal runaway battery location information, equipment status, reset process, handling process and stacker operation sequence.

3. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 1, characterized in that: The automatic ready state includes being inspected, being on standby, and being transferred; When the battery swap station is under inspection, the buzzer will sound an alarm. Wait for the inspection to be completed and go to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery. When the battery swap station is in standby mode, the buzzer sounds an alarm and the process goes to step 3 to immediately move the thermal runaway battery; When the battery swap station is in the warehouse transfer state, the buzzer alarms, all axes stop running, the current process of the stacker is copied to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process, and the warehouse transfer under the emergency handling reset process is completed. Enter step 3 to immediately carry out the thermal runaway battery transfer.

4. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 3, characterized in that: The emergency handling and resetting process includes the following steps: the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the low position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork extends, the lifting mechanism lifts the outgoing battery to the high position of the outgoing battery compartment, the stacker fork retracts, the stacker moves, the lifting mechanism runs to the low position of the incoming battery compartment, the battery is placed in the empty compartment, the warehouse transfer is completed, and step 3 is entered to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling.

5. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 4, characterized in that: When the battery swap station is in the automatic battery swap state, stop the movement of all axes except the unlocking gun, and copy the current process of the stacker to the thermal runaway emergency handling reset process; The stacker status includes: battery taking stacker status reset, battery placing stacker status reset and idle; The battery stacker state includes: taking batteries from the RGV, taking batteries full of battery compartments, and taking batteries from the cache compartment, waiting to take the batteries back to their original positions, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling; The battery stacker status includes: placing batteries in the buffer bin, placing batteries on the RGV, and placing batteries in the battery bin, waiting for the battery placement to be completed, and entering step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery handling; When the stacker is in an idle state, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation.

6. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery swap station is in a pause state, and the pause state includes: automatic readiness pause and automatic fault pause; The automatic readiness pause includes: initialization pause, inspection pause and warehouse transfer pause; The initialization is paused to determine whether it is a stacker initialization failure or a warehouse safety initialization failure. If not, proceed to step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation; if so, wait for manual processing; The inspection is suspended, waiting for manual processing; The warehouse transfer is paused to determine whether it is a safety type failure of the stacker or the warehouse. If so, wait for manual processing; if not, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before the thermal runaway emergency transportation, wait for the warehouse transfer under the emergency transportation reset process to be completed, and enter step 3 to immediately transport the thermal runaway battery.

7. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 6, characterized in that: The automatic fault is paused to determine whether it is a safety type fault in the stacker or the warehouse; if so, wait for manual processing; if not, determine the status of the stacker, copy the current process of the stacker to the reset process before thermal runaway emergency transportation, and enter step 3 to immediately carry out thermal runaway battery transportation.

8. The method for emergency handling of thermal runaway batteries in a battery swap station according to claim 7, characterized in that: The states of the stacker include: battery taking stacker state reset, battery placing stacker state reset and idle state.

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