Battery module manufacturing apparatus and battery module manufacturing method

Abstract

The battery module manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention may comprise: a stacking mold on which unit cell groups are disposed, the unit cell groups each comprising a plurality of battery cells and a cooling tube attached to the plurality of battery cells; a pressing unit that presses the plurality of unit cell groups and the spacers arranged between adjacent unit cell groups in one direction; and an alignment unit that aligns the upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height by moving the battery cells up and down.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery module manufacturing apparatus and a battery module manufacturing method, and more particularly to a battery module manufacturing apparatus and a battery module manufacturing method having assembly convenience by means of the following operation: a battery module assembly including a plurality of battery cells, a cooling tube and a spacer is pressed by means of an automated device and easily aligned with a top reference. This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0063347 filed in Korea on May 16, 2023 and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0047135 filed in Korea on April 8, 2024, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Background Art

[0002] Recently, the demand for portable electronic products such as laptop computers, cameras, and mobile phones has increased dramatically, and with the widespread development of electric vehicles, accumulators for energy storage, robots, and satellites, many studies are being conducted on high-performance secondary batteries that can be repeatedly charged.

[0003] Currently, commercially available secondary batteries include nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, lithium secondary batteries, etc. Among them, lithium secondary batteries have little or no memory effect. Therefore, compared with nickel-based batteries, lithium secondary batteries have the advantages of easy charging, very low self-discharge rate, and high energy density, and are receiving more and more attention.

[0004] Lithium secondary batteries mainly use lithium-based oxides and carbon materials as positive electrode active materials and negative electrode active materials, respectively. In addition, lithium secondary batteries also include electrode assemblies and outer packaging materials that contain the electrode assemblies and electrolyte solutions in an airtight manner. The electrode assemblies include positive and negative plates coated with positive and negative electrode active materials, respectively, and a separator is inserted between the positive and negative plates.

[0005] According to the shape of the battery case, lithium secondary batteries can be divided into pouch-type secondary batteries, in which the electrode assembly is included in a bag made of aluminum laminate, and can-type secondary batteries, in which the electrode assembly is included in a metal can. In addition, according to the shape of the metal can, can-type secondary batteries can be further subdivided into cylindrical batteries and prismatic batteries.

[0006] Lithium secondary batteries can be used in battery module or battery pack applications by densely stacking the battery cells themselves or battery cases in which the battery cells are arranged into the tightest packaging structure and electrically connecting them to provide high voltage and large current.

[0007] Taking cylindrical batteries as an example, the cylindrical batteries can be arranged in rows to form an array, and a cooler is placed between two arrays to circulate a cooling medium between them, thereby forming a unit cell group.

[0008] However, conventionally, the process of assembling multiple unit cell groups into a battery module or battery pack includes manual pressing and bolting. Due to the inconsistent pressing force, it is impossible to ensure consistent packaging tightness between battery cells, resulting in errors in the assembly process, which depends on the technical level of the operator, resulting in low assembly reliability.

[0009] Another disadvantage is that during or in the middle of the process of pressing a plurality of unit cell groups in one direction, the top reference alignment operation of aligning the upper surfaces (negative electrode surfaces) of the cylindrical batteries to the same height for the welding process is inefficient, resulting in long operation time and low productivity.

[0010] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a manufacturing apparatus that presses a plurality of unit cell groups through an automated machine to ensure assembly reliability and easily aligns the upper surfaces of battery cells for welding, thereby ensuring assembly convenience and improving productivity. Summary of the invention

[0011] Technical issues

[0012] The present disclosure aims to solve the above-mentioned problems, and therefore the present disclosure aims to provide a battery module manufacturing device and a battery module manufacturing method, in which a plurality of unit cell groups are pressed by an automated machine with a constant force to achieve consistent packaging tightness between battery cells and reduce the error rate, thereby improving assembly reliability.

[0013] The present disclosure also relates to providing a battery module manufacturing device and a battery module manufacturing method, which, during or in the middle of a process of pressing a plurality of unit cell groups in one direction, automatically aligns the upper surfaces (negative electrode surfaces) of the battery cells to the same height for a top reference alignment operation of a welding process, thereby achieving high operating efficiency, convenient assembly and improved productivity.

[0014] The technical problems of the present disclosure are not limited to the above-mentioned problems, and those skilled in the art will clearly understand these and other problems from the following description.

[0015] Technical Solution

[0016] The battery module manufacturing equipment according to the present disclosure includes: a stacking mold on which a unit cell group is installed, the unit cell group including a plurality of battery cells and cooling tubes attached to the plurality of battery cells; a pressing unit configured to press the plurality of unit cell groups and spacers arranged between adjacent unit cell groups in one direction; and an alignment unit configured to align the upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height by moving the battery cells up and down.

[0017] The aligning unit may be configured to move the unit cell group up and down relative to the spacer.

[0018] The aligning unit may include a stopper, and the stopper may be disposed above the stack mold and may be movable up and down relative to the stack mold.

[0019] The alignment unit may further include at least one lifting rod, one end of which moves up and down by means of the actuating unit, and the other end of which contacts the lower surface of the unit cell group.

[0020] The lifting rod can move the unit battery cell group upward.

[0021] The stopper may move downward and contact the upper surface of the unit cell group to prevent the unit cell group from moving upward during operation of the lifting rod.

[0022] The battery cell may have a joint portion on the upper surface, the joint portion protruding upward, and the stopper may have a notch portion on the bottom surface to prevent direct contact with the joint portion, the notch portion being recessed inward.

[0023] The pressing unit may include a pressing block, and the pressing block may have a convex protrusion to match a shape of one surface of the spacer.

[0024] The stacking mold may include: a stopper plate bent at one side of the mold body to form a reference surface when the plurality of unit cell groups and the spacer are pressed along the direction; a cell mounting portion protruding from an upper surface of the mold body and the unit cell group mounted on the cell mounting portion; and a spacer mounting portion, the spacer mounting portion being disposed adjacent to the cell mounting portion and the spacer mounted on the spacer mounting portion.

[0025] The mold body may have a slot through which the lifting rod passes.

[0026] A top surface of the spacer mounting portion may have a height lower than a top surface of the cell mounting portion.

[0027] The spacer may be provided with an alignment origin block at one side in the length direction, and the stacking mold may have an origin block accommodating portion accommodating the alignment origin block.

[0028] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the battery cell may be a cylindrical secondary battery, the plurality of battery cells may be arranged side by side in a row along the length direction of the battery module to form a cell array, the unit cell group may include a pair of cell arrays and the cooling tube arranged between the pair of cell arrays, the spacer may have a concave notch portion on each of one surface and the other surface in the length direction to match the external shape of the unit cell group, an alignment origin block may be provided on one side in the length direction, a front stop may be provided at the front side of the stacking mold, and an origin block accommodating portion for accommodating the alignment origin block may be provided at the rear side of the stacking mold.

[0029] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the stacked mold may be disposed on a support having a plurality of mold alignment protrusions.

[0030] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the stacking mold may include a stop plate on one side of the mold body to form a reference surface when pressing the multiple unit cell groups and the spacer along the direction, and the pressing unit may include a pressing block on the other side of the mold body to press the multiple unit cell groups and the spacer against the stop plate, and the pressing block may have a convex protrusion to match the shape of one surface of the spacer.

[0031] In addition, according to the present disclosure, a battery module manufacturing method is provided, including: a preparation step, the preparation step is used to prepare a unit cell group, the unit cell group includes battery cells and cooling tubes between the battery cells; an installation step, the installation step is used to install a plurality of spacers and a plurality of unit cell groups on a stacking mold; a pressing step, the pressing step is used to press the plurality of spacers and the plurality of unit cell groups in a direction by a pressing unit; and an alignment step, the alignment step is used to align the upper surface of the battery cell by moving the unit cell group up and down with the help of an alignment unit.

[0032] The aligning step may be performed before the pressing step is completed.

[0033] The pressing step may be performed by moving a pressing block of the pressing unit from one side of the plurality of unit cell groups and the plurality of spacers in a state where a reference surface is provided for the plurality of unit cell groups and the plurality of spacers.

[0034] The aligning step may be performed by operating a lifting lever of the aligning unit on a lower surface of the unit cell group to move the unit cell group up and down relative to the spacer.

[0035] The battery module manufacturing method according to the present disclosure may be performed using the battery module manufacturing apparatus according to the present disclosure.

[0036] Beneficial effects

[0037] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a plurality of unit cell groups may be mounted on a stacking mold and then pre-aligned and pressed by a pressing unit, thereby achieving consistent packaging tightness between battery cells and reducing the error rate, thereby improving assembly reliability.

[0038] In addition, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, by automating the top reference alignment operation of aligning the upper surfaces (negative electrode surfaces) of the battery cells to the same height during or in the middle of the process of pressing multiple unit cell groups in one direction for welding, operational efficiency can be improved, assembly convenience can be ensured, and productivity can be improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039] The accompanying drawings illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the following detailed description, serve to provide a further understanding of the technical aspects of the present disclosure, and thus the present disclosure should not be construed as being limited to the accompanying drawings.

[0040] Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of main components of a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0041] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Exploded three-dimensional diagram.

[0042] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating a unit cell group including a battery cell and a cooling pipe, and a spacer supplied to a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0043] Figure 4 is a perspective view of a stacking mold in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0044] Figure 5 is a top view showing a plurality of unit cell groups and a pressing unit on a stacking mold in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0045] Figure 6 is a partial side view of a unit cell group and an alignment unit in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0046] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating a pressing unit that presses a unit cell group mounted on a stacking mold in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0047] Figure 8is a diagram schematically illustrating an operation of an alignment unit on a unit cell group in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Before the description, it should be understood that the terms or words used in the present disclosure and the appended claims should not be interpreted as limited to the general and dictionary meanings, but are interpreted based on the meaning and concept corresponding to the technical aspects of the present disclosure based on the principle of allowing the inventor to appropriately define the terms for the best interpretation.

[0049] Therefore, the embodiments described herein and the illustrations in the accompanying drawings are exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure to describe the technical aspects of the present disclosure by way of illustration, and are not intended to be limiting, and it should be understood that various other equivalents and modifications may be made when the present application is filed.

[0050] In the accompanying drawings, for the convenience and clarity of description, the size of each element or a specific part of an element is exaggerated, omitted or schematically shown. Therefore, the size of each element does not fully reflect the actual size. When it is determined that the detailed description of the relevant known function or element may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present disclosure, the description is omitted.

[0051] Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of main components of a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 2 yes Figure 1 , and Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating a unit cell group including a battery cell and a cooling pipe, and a spacer supplied to a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0052] First, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a battery module manufacturing device 1 includes: a stacking mold 100, on which a unit cell group 10 is installed, and the unit cell group 10 includes a plurality of battery cells 12 and a cooling tube 20 attached to the plurality of battery cells 12; a pressing unit 200, which is used to press the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a spacer 30 arranged between the unit cell group 10 and an adjacent unit cell group 10 in one direction; and an alignment unit 300, which is used to align the upper surfaces 14 of the battery cells 12 to the same height by moving the battery cells 12 up and down.

[0053] The stacking mold 100 may be disposed on the support member 50. The support member 50 may have a plurality of mold alignment protrusions 51. The unit cell group 10 may be mounted on the stacking mold 100. The unit cell group 10 may include a plurality of battery cells 12.

[0054] The plurality of battery cells 12 are secondary batteries and may include cylindrical secondary batteries, pouch-type secondary batteries, or prismatic secondary batteries. Figure 2 and Figure 3 This embodiment is described with the plurality of battery cells 12 shown as cylindrical secondary batteries. The battery cells 12 may be a plurality of cylindrical secondary batteries arranged in a horizontal direction and standing in a vertical direction.

[0055] refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 , the battery cell 12 may have a joint portion 13 and an upper surface 14 on the top. The joint portion 13 may have a first polarity, and the upper surface 14 may have a second polarity. The joint portion 13 and the upper surface 14 may be electrically insulated from each other. The first polarity may be the positive polarity of the battery cell 12, and the second polarity may be the negative polarity of the battery cell 12. That is, the joint portion 13 may be the positive portion of the battery cell 12, and the upper surface 14 may be the negative portion of the battery cell 12. The joint portion 13 may extend above the upper surface 14. Alternatively, depending on the manufacturer, the joint portion 13 may not extend above the upper surface 14. For example, the battery cell 12 may be a so-called jointless structure, in which the joint portion 13 and the upper surface are on the same plane. The battery cell 12 may include an electrode assembly (not shown) and a battery can accommodating the electrode assembly. The components of the battery cell 12 are well known to those skilled in the art when submitting an application, and a detailed description will be omitted.

[0056] A plurality of battery cells 12 may form a cell array 11. That is, the cell array 11 may include a plurality of battery cells 12 arranged side by side in a row along the length direction (X-axis direction) of the battery module. The number of battery cells 12 forming the cell array 11 is not limited to a specific range. In the accompanying drawings, a cell array 11 including eleven battery cells arranged along the length direction is shown.

[0057] In addition, a plurality of cell arrays 11 may form a unit cell group 10. The unit cell group 10 may include a pair (two) of cell arrays 11 and a cooling tube 20 disposed between the pair of cell arrays 11. The cooling tube 20 cools the battery cell 12 while contacting one surface of the cell array 11. The cooling tube 20 may have an internal space and be formed with a structure for heat transfer by means of a cooling medium flow in the internal space, and a detailed description will be omitted. The cell array 11 and the cooling tube 20 may be glued to each other.

[0058] The spacer 30 may be disposed between the unit cell group 10 and the adjacent unit cell group 10. The spacer 30 refers to an S-shaped structure that fills the gap between the unit cell group 10 and the adjacent unit cell group 10. Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown mainly, the spacer 30 may have a concave notch portion 31 on each of one surface and the other surface in the length direction to match the outer shape of the unit cell group 10. The inner curvature of the notch portion 31 or the number of the concave notch portions 31 may be determined according to the specification of the outer shape of the unit cell group 10 coupled to the spacer 30 so that the shapes match each other.

[0059] In addition, the spacer 30 may be provided with an alignment origin block 32 on one side in the length direction. The alignment origin block 32 plays a role in making it easy to pre-align the spacer 30 with the stacking mold 100. Although this embodiment shows that the alignment origin block 32 is provided only on one side of the spacer 30, the alignment origin block 32 may be provided on both sides of the spacer 30 if necessary.

[0060] As described above, one unit cell group 10 and one spacer 30 may form one unit, and a plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a plurality of spacers 30 may be assembled into a battery module assembly.

[0061] refer to Figure 2 , a plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a plurality of spacers 30 may be mounted and received on the stacking mold 100. The stacking mold 100 may have mounting and receiving structures 130, 140, 150 of many shapes corresponding to the shapes of the bottoms of the unit cell groups 10 and the spacers 30, and a description thereof will be provided below. In addition, a stopper plate 120 may be provided on one side of the stacking mold 100, and the stopper plate 120 is used as a reference surface when the unit cell groups 10 and the spacers 30 are pressed in one direction by the operation of the pressing unit 200.

[0062] A front stopper 160 may be provided at the front side of the stacking mold 100. The battery module assembly including the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 may be received in the mounting portion of the stacking mold 100, and a gap of the stacking mold 100 in the front-to-rear direction (X-axis direction) may be minimized by means of the front stopper 160.

[0063] The pressing unit 200 may be used to press the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 between the unit cell groups 10 in one direction. The pressing blocks 210 of the pressing unit 200 may press the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 sequentially stacked on the upper surface of the stacking mold 100 in one direction.

[0064] The alignment unit 300 may be used to align the upper surfaces 14 of the battery cells 12 to the same height by moving the battery cells 12 up and down. The alignment unit 300 may be configured to move the unit cell group 10 up and down relative to the spacer 30. That is, the spacer 30 is fixed to the stacking mold 100 in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) to align the preassembled unit cell group 10 in the vertical direction.

[0065] The alignment unit 300 may include a stopper 320 that can move up and down and move substantially downward. In addition, the alignment unit 300 may further include a lifting rod 310 that can move up and down and move substantially upward. The stopper 320 may move downward by means of a connecting rod 340. Therefore, the upper surfaces 14 (negative electrode surfaces) of the battery cells 12 may be aligned to the same height. When the upper surfaces 14 of the battery cells 12 are aligned to the same height, post-processing such as welding may be easily performed.

[0066] With the battery module manufacturing apparatus 1 as described above, a plurality of unit cell groups 10 may be mounted on a stacking mold 100 and then pre-aligned and pressed with a constant force by means of a pressing unit 200 , thereby ensuring uniform packaging tightness between the battery cells 12 .

[0067] In addition, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, a top reference alignment operation for a welding process may be easily performed during or in the middle of a process of pressing a plurality of unit cell groups 10 in one direction, and a detailed description will be provided below.

[0068] Figure 4 is a perspective view of a stacking mold in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 5 is a top view showing a plurality of unit cell groups and a pressing unit on a stacking mold in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Figure 6 is a partial side view of a unit cell group and an alignment unit in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0069] Main references Figure 4 The stacking mold 100 may include: a stopper plate 120, which is bent on one side of the mold body 110 to form a reference surface when pressing a plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a plurality of spacers 30 in one direction; a cell mounting portion 130, which protrudes from the upper surface of the mold body 110 and is provided for mounting the unit cell groups 10; and a spacer mounting portion 140, which is disposed adjacent to the cell mounting portion 130 and is provided for mounting the spacers 30.

[0070] The stacking mold 100 may include a mold body 110 disposed on a horizontal surface (XY plane). A plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a plurality of spacers 30 may be mounted on an upper surface of the mold body 110. The mold body 110 may have a slot 111 through which the lifting rod 310 passes. The slot 111 may be formed along the width direction (Y-axis direction) of the battery module and may include a plurality of slots spaced at regular intervals along the length direction.

[0071] The stopper plate 120 may be disposed on one side of the mold body 110. The stopper plate 120 may be bent in a vertical direction (Z-axis direction) on one side (front end in the X-axis direction) of the mold body 110 and extend upward from the mold body 110.

[0072] The stopper plates 120 may be disposed at opposite sides of the pressing unit 200 to serve as stoppers to form reference surfaces when the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 are pressed in one direction.

[0073] The cell mounting portion 130 may be disposed on the upper surface of the mold body 110. The cell mounting portion 130 may be formed in a shape matching the bottom of the unit cell group 10. The unit cell group 10 may be mounted on the cell mounting portion 130, and the cell mounting portion 130 may be smaller than the size of the bottom of the unit cell group 10. Therefore, when pressed by the pressing unit 200, the unit cell group 10 may move slightly in the left-right direction (X-axis direction). In addition, the cell mounting portion 130 may extend relatively upward between the spacer mounting portions 140.

[0074] The spacer mounting portion 140 is disposed adjacent to the cell mounting portion 130 and is located at a position where the spacer 30 is mounted. The height of the top surface of the spacer mounting portion 140 may be lower than the height of the cell mounting portion 130. That is, the spacer mounting portion 140 may be recessed to be lower than the cell mounting portion 130. The spacer mounting portion 140 may be formed in a corrugated shape to match the shape of the spacer 30. The spacer mounting portion 140 may be larger than the size of the bottom of the spacer 30 to form a predetermined gap in the left-right direction of the spacer 30 mounted on the spacer mounting portion 140.

[0075] An origin block receiving portion 150 receiving the alignment origin block 32 may be provided at the rear side of the stacking mold 100. The origin block receiving portion 150 may be recessed in the same manner as the spacer mounting portion 140 and may have substantially the same height.

[0076] Main references Figure 5, the pressing unit 200 may include a pressing rod 211 and a pressing block 210 connected to the pressing rod 211. The pressing block 210 may have a convex protrusion 220. The convex protrusion 220 may be formed to match the shape of the concave notch portion 31 of the spacer 30. Although not shown in the drawings, the pressing unit 200 may include an actuating unit to extend and retract the pressing rod 211, thereby moving the pressing block 210 in the left and right directions.

[0077] Therefore, when a plurality of unit cell groups 10 and a plurality of spacers 30 are mounted on the stacking mold 100, the unit cell groups 10 and the spacers 30 can be easily mounted in each of the cell mounting part 130, the spacer mounting part 140, and the origin block accommodating part 150. Pre-alignment of the battery module can be relatively easily performed by means of a process of mounting the components at various positions.

[0078] In addition, after pre-alignment, the pressing unit 200 can press with a constant force so that the shapes of the convex protrusion 220 of the pressing block 210 and the concave notch 31 of the spacer 30 match each other. Therefore, it is possible to achieve consistent packaging tightness between the battery cells 12 and reduce the error rate, thereby improving assembly reliability.

[0079] The alignment unit 300 is used to align the upper surfaces 14 of the battery cells 12 to the same height by moving the battery cells 12 up and down, and the alignment unit 300 may be configured to move the unit cell group 10 up and down relative to the spacer 30 .

[0080] For this purpose, the main reference Figure 6 The alignment unit 300 may include a stopper 320 disposed above the stack mold 100 and moving up and down relative to the stack mold 100 .

[0081] The stopper 320 may be disposed above the stacking mold 100. In the alignment operation, the stopper 320 may be moved downward to a predetermined height. With the help of the stopper 320, the unit cell group 10 may be moved up and down relative to the spacer 30. In particular, when the unit cell group 10 is higher than the spacer 30 above the alignment position, the alignment operation may be effectively performed.

[0082] In addition, the alignment unit 300 may further include at least one lifting rod 310 , one end of which moves up and down by means of the actuating unit, and the other end of which contacts the lower surface of the unit cell group 10 .

[0083] The lifting rod 310 may pass through the narrow slot 111 of the stacking mold 100. One end of the lifting rod 310 may be moved up and down by means of an actuating unit (not shown), and the other end may contact the lower surface of the unit cell group 10. Therefore, when the actuating unit operates for upward movement, the lifting rod 310 may extend upward, and the unit cell group 10 contacting the other end may move upward. Because the end of the lifting rod 310 is connected to a point on the bottom of the unit cell group 10, during the operation of the lifting rod 310, the spacer 30 cannot move in the vertical direction, and only the unit cell group 10 may move upward and be aligned relative to the spacer 30.

[0084] The lifting rod 310 may include at least one lifting rod 310 in consideration of the weight and the center of mass of the unit cell group 10. Although the embodiment provides three lifting rods 310 for each unit cell group 10, the number of the lifting rods is not limited thereto.

[0085] The stopper 320 may be disposed above the stacking mold 100. During the alignment operation, the stopper 320 may be moved downward to a predetermined height. In addition, by the operation of the lifting rod 310, the stopper 320 may contact the upper surface 14 of the unit cell group 10 to prevent the unit cell group 10 from moving upward. The stopper 320 may include a plurality of stoppers corresponding to the number of battery cells 12 to contact the upper surface 14 of each battery cell 12. The stopper 320 may have a notch portion 330 that is recessed inwardly on its bottom surface 321 to prevent direct contact with the joint portion 13.

[0086] The alignment unit 300 as described above may be configured to move the unit cell group 10 up and down relative to the spacer 30. That is, the stopper 320 alone or in combination with the lifting rod may be used to move the unit cell group 10 up and down relative to the spacer 30. Therefore, the spacer 30 is fixed to the stacking mold 100 in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) to align the preassembled unit cell group 10 in the vertical direction. During or in the middle of a process of pressing a plurality of unit cell groups 10 in one direction, a top reference alignment operation, i.e., an operation of aligning the upper surface 14 (negative electrode surface) of the battery cell 12 to the same height for a welding process, may be easily performed, thereby ensuring assembly convenience.

[0087] Figure 7 is a diagram showing a pressing unit in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pressing unit pressing a unit cell group mounted on a stacking mold, and Figure 8 is a diagram schematically illustrating an operation of an alignment unit on a unit cell group in a battery module manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0088] In the following, reference will be made to Figures 1 to 8A process of manufacturing a battery module by the battery module manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is described.

[0089] According to the present embodiment, the battery module manufacturing method may include: a preparation step of preparing a unit cell group 10 including a battery cell 12 and a cooling tube 20 between the battery cells 12; an installation step of installing a plurality of spacers 30 and a plurality of unit cell groups 10 on a stacking mold 100; a pressing step of pressing a plurality of spacers 30 and a plurality of unit cell groups 10 in a direction by a pressing unit 200; and an alignment step of aligning the upper surface 14 of the battery cell 12 by moving the unit cell group 10 up and down with the aid of an alignment unit 300.

[0090] The preparation step is a step of forming a unit cell group 10. The unit cell group 10 is formed by connecting two cell arrays 11 and a cooling tube 20. That is, a pair of cell arrays 11 can be arranged side by side in a row along the length direction (X-axis direction) of the battery module, and the cooling tube 20 is inserted between the pair of cell arrays 11, and can be kept together to form the unit cell group 10. The step of preparing the unit cell group 10 can be performed as a pretreatment of the manufacturing process. In this case, the unit cell group 10 including the cell arrays 11 and the cooling tubes 20 pre-connected to each other can be provided to the battery module manufacturing equipment 1 of the present embodiment.

[0091] The preparing step may further include applying a resin material for adhesion or a structural resin to the unit cell group 10 .

[0092] Subsequently, an installation step is performed. In the installation step, a plurality of spacers 30 and a plurality of unit cell groups 10 may be installed on the stacking mold 100. In this case, based on Figure 5 , the spacer 30 may be installed at a position adjacent to the stopper plate 120, and the unit cell group 10 may be installed on the left side of the spacer 30. In the installation step, the spacer 30 and the unit cell group 10 may be installed in order from right to left.

[0093] Describe in detail: First, the spacer 30 is installed on the rightmost spacer mounting portion 140 inside the stacking mold 100. In this case, the right surface of the spacer 30 can be basically set to contact the stopper plate 120, and there can be a small gap in the left and right direction (Y-axis direction). In addition, the unit cell group 10 is installed on the left side of the spacer 30. The unit cell group 10 can be installed on the cell mounting portion 130, and the left concave notch portion 31 of the spacer 30 can be connected to match the shape of one surface (right surface) of the unit cell group 10, that is, the outer convex shape of the battery cell 12. In addition, another spacer 30 can be installed on the left side of the unit cell group 10. The left and right (Y-axis) installation process is performed in order from right to left (-Y-axis direction). The spacer 30, the unit cell group 10 and the spacer 30 are installed in sequence until a preset number of unit cell groups 10 and a preset number of spacers 30 are installed. In addition, on the leftmost side of the completed installation, the concave notch portion 31 of the spacer 30 may be exposed.

[0094] Subsequently, a pressing step is performed. The pressing step is a step of pressing the plurality of spacers 30 and the plurality of unit cell groups 10 in one direction by the pressing unit 200. Figure 6 , the pressing step can be performed by the rightward movement of the pressing block 210. When the pressing block 210 applies the pressing force, the concave notch portion 31 fits between each convex protrusion 220 of the pressing block 210, and the pressing force is uniformly applied to the right side. Therefore, the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 can be held together in close contact with each other. It is possible to achieve consistent packaging tightness between the battery cells 12 and reduce the error rate, thereby improving assembly reliability.

[0095] Conventionally, there has been no proposal for a battery module manufacturing apparatus 1 including a pressing unit 200 according to the present disclosure, in order to press the battery cells against each other, pressing plates (clamps) are placed on both sides of adjacent battery cells, and an operator tightens screws from both sides to apply force to the battery cells. Because the operator must tighten the screws personally, a lot of labor and time are required, and the pressing level depends on the operator. According to the present disclosure, the battery cells 12 can be pressed against each other in an automatic manner with the aid of a pressing block 210, thereby saving labor and time and ensuring a constant pressing level.

[0096] Finally, an alignment step is performed. Figure 8In the alignment step, when the actuating unit (not shown) is operated for upward movement, the lifting rod 310 may extend upward, and the unit cell group 10 in contact with the other end may move upward. Because the end of the lifting rod 310 is connected to a point on the bottom of the unit cell group 10, during the operation of the lifting rod 310, the spacer 30 cannot move in the vertical direction, and only the unit cell group 10 may move upward relative to the spacer 30 and be aligned.

[0097] The stopper block 320 may be disposed above the stacking mold 100. During the alignment operation, the stopper block 320 may be moved downward to a predetermined height (at Figure 8 In addition, by the operation of the lifting rod 310, the unit cell group 10 moves upward, and the stopper 320 contacts the upper surface 14 of the unit cell group 10 to prevent the unit cell group 10 from moving upward.

[0098] Here, by virtue of the notch portion 330 present in the bottom surface 321 of the stopper 320 , the joint portion 13 may be prevented from being contacted, and the upper surface 14 of the battery cell 12 and the bottom surface 321 of the stopper 320 may be supported to contact each other.

[0099] The bottom surface 321 of the stopper 320 may be a reference surface for aligning the upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height. Figure 8 As shown on the right side of FIG. 3 , there may be a gap D between the reference surface and the upper surface 14 of the battery cell 12. When the unit cell group 10 is moved upward relative to the spacer 30 by the operation of the lifting rod 310, the upper surface 14 of the battery cell 12 and the bottom surface 321 of the stopper 320 may be brought into contact with each other to remove the gap D, so that the upper surfaces 14 of all the battery cells 12 in the unit cell group 10 may be located on the same plane.

[0100] Conventionally, there has been no proposal for a battery module manufacturing apparatus 1 including an alignment unit 300 according to the present disclosure, and in order to make the surfaces of the battery cells flush at the same height, a top pressing method utilizing gravity is used: by placing a pressing plate (clamp) on the top and bottom of the battery cell and applying force by tightening the screws by an operator. Because the operator must tighten the screws personally, a lot of labor and time are required, and the pressing level depends on the operator. In addition, the upper pressing plate is heavy. According to the present disclosure, the upper surface 14 of the battery cell 12 can be aligned to the same plane in an automatic manner with the aid of the alignment unit 300, thereby saving labor and time and ensuring a constant pressing level at all times. In addition, the need for a heavy upper pressing plate can be eliminated, thereby reducing the cost and weight of the fixture.

[0101] The alignment step may be performed in parallel with the pressing step. The alignment step may be performed before the pressing step starts, and the alignment step may be performed after the pressing step is completed. For example, after pressing the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 by applying a pressing force less than the maximum pressing force, the alignment step may be performed, and after completing the alignment step, the pressing step may be performed. In the pressing step, in the case where the pressing block 210 applies the maximum force to the right (based on Figure 7 ), so that the plurality of unit cell groups 10 and the plurality of spacers 30 are in close contact with each other, making it impossible to move and align the unit cell groups 10 in the vertical direction relative to the spacers 30. Therefore, the pressing step and the aligning step can be performed in parallel.

[0102] In addition, immediately after the installation step, the stopper 320 may be moved downward to a predetermined height and ready to align the upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height, and after the pressing step is completed, the alignment step may be completed by the operation of the lifting rod 310 .

[0103] With this step, multiple unit cell groups 10 can be installed on the stacking mold 100, and then pre-aligned and pressed with a constant pressing force by means of the pressing unit 200, thereby achieving consistent packaging tightness between the battery cells 12 and reducing the error rate, thereby ensuring assembly reliability.

[0104] In addition, by automating the top reference alignment operation of aligning the upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height for welding during or in the middle of the process of pressing a plurality of unit cell groups 10 in one direction, it is possible to improve operation efficiency, ensure assembly convenience, and improve productivity.

[0105] Meanwhile, the battery module manufacturing apparatus according to the present disclosure may be used in an apparatus for manufacturing a battery pack.

[0106] Although the present disclosure has been described above with respect to a limited number of embodiments and drawings, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and it is apparent that those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications within the technical aspects of the present disclosure and the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0107] Terms indicating directions such as up, down, left, right, front, rear, etc. are used for convenience of description, but it is obvious to those skilled in the art that these terms may change according to the elements mentioned or the position of the observer.

[0108] [reference numerals list]

[0109] 10: Cell group 11: Cell array

[0110] 12: Battery cell 13: Connector

[0111] 14: Upper surface

[0112] 50: Support member 51: Mold alignment protrusion

[0113] 100: stacking mold 110: mold body

[0114] 111: Slot 120: Stop plate

[0115] 130: Battery cell installation part 140: Spacer installation part

[0116] 150: origin block accommodating portion 160: front stopper

[0117] 200: Pressing unit 210: Pressing block

[0118] 211: Pressing rod 220: Convex protrusion

[0119] 300: Alignment unit 310: Lifting rod

[0120] 320: Stopper 321: Bottom surface

[0121] 330: Notch 340: Connecting rod

Claims

1. A battery module manufacturing device, comprising: a stacking mold on which a unit cell group is mounted, the unit cell group including a plurality of battery cells and cooling tubes attached to the plurality of battery cells; A pressing unit configured to press a plurality of unit cell groups and spacers disposed between adjacent unit cell groups in one direction; as well as An aligning unit is configured to align upper surfaces of the battery cells to the same height by moving the battery cells up and down.

2. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The alignment unit is configured to move the unit cell group up and down relative to the spacer.

3. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 2, wherein: The aligning unit includes a stopper block, and wherein the stopper block is disposed above the stacking mold and moves up and down relative to the stacking mold.

4. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 3, wherein: The alignment unit further comprises at least one lifting rod, one end of which moves up and down by means of the actuating unit, and the other end of which contacts the lower surface of the unit battery cell group.

5. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The lifting rod moves the unit battery cell group upward.

6. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The stopper moves downward and contacts an upper surface of the unit cell group to prevent the unit cell group from moving upward during operation of the lifting rod.

7. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The battery cell has a joint portion on the upper surface, the joint portion protruding upward, and The stop block has a notch on its bottom surface to prevent direct contact with the joint portion, and the notch is recessed inwardly.

8. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 2, wherein: The pressing unit includes a pressing block, and The pressing block has a convex protrusion to match the shape of one surface of the spacer.

9. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The stacking mold comprises: a stopper plate bent at one side of the mold body to form a reference surface when the plurality of unit cell groups and the spacer are pressed in the direction; a cell mounting portion protruding from an upper surface of the mold body and on which the unit cell group is mounted; and A spacer mounting portion is provided adjacent to the cell mounting portion and the spacer is mounted on the spacer mounting portion.

10. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 9, wherein: The mold body has a slot for the lifting rod to pass through.

11. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 9, wherein: A top surface of the spacer mounting portion has a height lower than a top surface of the cell mounting portion.

12. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 9, wherein: The spacer is provided with an alignment origin block on one side in the length direction, and Wherein, the stacking mold has an origin block accommodating portion for accommodating the alignment origin block.

13. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The battery cells are cylindrical secondary batteries, the plurality of battery cells are arranged side by side in a row along the length direction of the battery module to form a cell array, and the unit cell group includes a pair of cell arrays and the cooling tube disposed between the pair of cell arrays, wherein the spacer has a concave notch portion on each of one surface and the other surface in the length direction to match the outer shape of the unit cell group, and an alignment origin block is provided on one side in the length direction, and Wherein, a front stopper is arranged at the front side of the stacking mold, and an origin block accommodating portion for accommodating the alignment origin block is arranged at the rear side of the stacking mold.

14. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 13, wherein: The stacked mold is disposed on a support having a plurality of mold alignment protrusions.

15. The battery module manufacturing equipment according to claim 13, wherein: The stacking mold includes a stopper plate on one side of a mold body to form a reference surface when pressing the plurality of unit cell groups and the spacer in the direction, wherein the pressing unit includes a pressing block on the other side of the mold body to press the plurality of unit cell groups and the spacer against the stopper plate, and The pressing block has a convex protrusion to match the shape of one surface of the spacer.

16. A method for manufacturing a battery module, the method comprising: A preparation step for preparing a unit cell group, wherein the unit cell group includes battery cells and cooling tubes between the battery cells; An installation step for installing a plurality of spacers and a plurality of unit cell groups on a stacking mold; A pressing step for pressing the plurality of spacers and the plurality of unit cell groups along a direction by a pressing unit; as well as An alignment step is used to align the upper surface of the battery cell by moving the unit cell group up and down with the help of an alignment unit.

17. The method for manufacturing a battery module according to claim 16, wherein: The aligning step is performed before the pressing step is completed.

18. The method for manufacturing a battery module according to claim 16, wherein: The pressing step is performed by moving a pressing block of the pressing unit from one side of the plurality of unit cell groups and the plurality of spacers in a state where a reference surface is provided for the plurality of unit cell groups and the plurality of spacers.

19. The method for manufacturing a battery module according to claim 16, wherein: The aligning step is performed by operating the lifting and lowering rods of the aligning unit on the lower surface of the unit cell group to move the unit cell group up and down relative to the spacer.

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