High-flexibility manufacturing production line for thermal battery heating sheet

Abstract

The invention discloses a high-flexibility manufacturing production line for a thermal battery heating sheet, belongs to the technical field of thermal battery manufacturing, and particularly relates to the design of the thermal battery heating sheet production line, and the heating sheet production line has high flexibility through the measures of configuring a proper logistics line body, reasonably dividing a production area, dynamically adjusting the number of equipment and the like. The device can be used for high-efficiency production of heating sheets with different diameters and different weights. According to the method, the process balance rate of a production line can be 90%-95.5% and is superior to 65%-85% of the prior art, the equipment utilization rate and the production efficiency are greatly improved, and the method is more suitable for multi-variety and small-batch production of thermal batteries.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of thermal batteries, and in particular relates to a highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heating plates. Background Art

[0002] Thermal batteries are primary storage batteries that use molten salt as an electrolyte and are activated by melting it using their own heat source. They offer advantages such as a short activation time, wide operating temperature range, long storage cycles, and are maintenance-free. They are increasingly used in weapon systems.

[0003] With the increasing application of thermal batteries, as customized special power sources for weapons and equipment, thermal batteries need to be designed according to different usage requirements. Therefore, thermal battery production needs to be efficient and flexible. However, in the past, technical research on thermal batteries has mainly focused on active material research, working principles, reliability design, etc., and there are relatively few technical solutions for the high-efficiency and high-flexibility production of thermal batteries. Manual production is still the mainstream production mode. As the demand for thermal batteries continues to increase, the original manual production mode cannot meet the demand. Domestic mainstream thermal battery manufacturers and research institutes have carried out some automation attempts and conducted technical research and innovation on the automatic preparation of heating plates. However, these technical solutions are all based on the automation transformation of the manual mode and are not based on the overall design of the production line. There are problems such as mismatched production rhythm, low production efficiency, and low equipment utilization.

[0004] The document "Lu Ruisheng, Liu Xiaojiang. Thermal Battery, Beijing: National Defense Industry Press, 2005" on pages 244-245 points out the manual preparation method of composite sheets. The manual preparation method of heating sheets is basically the same as that of composite sheets. It only needs to replace the powder with heating powder:

[0005] (1) Accurately weigh the required powder on a scale.

[0006] (2) Pour the weighed positive electrode material into the mold and flatten it with a scraper; then pour the weighed diaphragm material onto the flattened positive electrode material and flatten it with a scraper; then pour the weighed negative electrode powder into the mold, flatten it with a scraper and place the mold core.

[0007] (3) Move the mold with powdered material to the center of the hydraulic press table.

[0008] (4) Start the hydraulic press with the set pressure and maintain the pressure for about 3 seconds.

[0009] (5) Remove the mold and take out the single battery.

[0010] The above is a method for manually preparing thermal battery heating plates. This manual operation mode cannot meet the increasingly high requirements of aerospace equipment for quality and efficiency.

[0011] Patent 200810201616.X, "Automatic Preparation System for Thermal Battery Cells," discloses an automatic preparation system for thermal battery cells. This system utilizes a control system, a press system, a detection system, an automatic powder spreading system, an asbestos ring loading system, a manipulator, and other mechanisms to form an automatic preparation system for thermal battery cells. However, the individual units described in the "Automatic Preparation System for Thermal Battery Cells" are all located in fixed positions and quantities. Thermal batteries are customized specialty chemical power sources, and each thermal battery product is designed with heating plates of varying diameters and thicknesses based on usage requirements. Therefore, the technical solution in the "Automatic Preparation System for Thermal Battery Cells" cannot meet the production needs of my country's thermal battery products, which require small batch sizes and a wide variety of products.

[0012] To evaluate the efficiency of a production line, the process balance rate is generally used. The process balance rate, B, is calculated as {Σ(Ti / Ci) / T0*N}*100%, where Ti is the operating time of a single piece of equipment in the production line, Ci is the number of pieces of equipment in that process, T0 is the operating time of the bottleneck process, and N is the number of processes on the production line.

[0013] For example, when preparing a heating plate with a diameter of 36mm and a powder content of 2.2g, the operating time of each powder weighing device is 15s, the operating time of each powder leveling device is 20s, the operating time of each powder pressing device is 18s, and the operating time of each heating plate inspection device is 15s. Therefore, the process balance rate of this production line is (15 + 20 + 18 + 15) / 20 * 4 = 85%. When preparing a heating plate with a diameter of 86mm and a powder content of 12.0g, the operating time of each powder weighing device is 23s, the operating time of each powder leveling device is 35s, the operating time of each powder pressing device is 18s, and the operating time of each powder leveling device is 15s. Therefore, the process balance rate of this production line is (23 + 35 + 18 + 15) / 35 * 4 = 65%. In other words, the process balance rate of this production line drops sharply after switching to different products.

[0014] The disclosed technical solution in Patent 200810201616.X, "Automatic Thermal Battery Cell Preparation System," lacks flexibility in the location and quantity of individual equipment, resulting in a significant drop in equipment utilization after a model change. To mitigate this low utilization, this production line is typically reserved for the production of specific product models, failing to meet the diverse, small-batch production needs of thermal batteries. Furthermore, the system requires the replacement of supporting tooling when switching product models, requiring significant calibration time, typically 4-8 hours. Summary of the Invention

[0015] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention aims to provide a highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heating plates.

[0016] In order to achieve the above purpose, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions: a highly flexible production line for thermal battery heating plates, comprising

[0017] Weighing area: including the U-shaped logistics line and several sets of automatic powder weighing equipment connected to it;

[0018] Spreading area: including the first U-shaped logistics line and several sets of automatic powder spreading equipment connected to it;

[0019] Pressing area: includes several presses and several conveying lines connected to both ends of the presses and communicating with them;

[0020] Detection area: including the second U-shaped logistics line and several sets of heating plate detection equipment connected to it;

[0021] The U-shaped logistics line in the weighing area is connected to the automatic powder flattening equipment in the spreading area, the first U-shaped logistics line in the spreading area is connected to the press in the pressing area, the conveying line in the pressing area is connected to the second U-shaped logistics line in the detection area, and the spreading area is also equipped with an L-shaped logistics line connected to the detection area.

[0022] Furthermore, the weighing area, spreading area, pressing area and testing area are all equipped with robotic arms.

[0023] Furthermore, in the weighing area, the robot places the empty material tray on the U-shaped logistics line, and the robot places the empty material tray on the automatic powder weighing equipment to weigh the powder. Then the robot puts the material tray filled with powder back into the U-shaped logistics line, and transports the material tray filled with powder to the connecting point between the weighing area and the spreading area, and the robot transfers the powder in the material tray to the automatic flattening equipment in the spreading area.

[0024] Furthermore, in the spreading area, the L-shaped logistics line transports the mold in the detection area to the automatic powder leveling equipment, and then the tray with powder in the weighing area is dumped by a robot, the powder is poured into the mold, and the tray is returned to the weighing area, and the powder is leveled in the automatic powder leveling equipment. After the powdering is completed, the robot transports the mold containing the powder to the first U-shaped logistics line and transports it to the pressing area.

[0025] Furthermore, in the pressing area, the mold is transported into the press by a conveyor line, and then the mold equipped with the heating plate is transported to the second U-shaped logistics line in the detection area by the conveyor line.

[0026] Furthermore, in the inspection area, the robot places the mold in the heating plate inspection equipment to inspect the heating plate. After passing the inspection, the heating plate is taken out, and then the mold is transported by the robot to the L-shaped logistics line and returned to the spreading area.

[0027] Furthermore, equipment such as automatic powder weighing equipment, automatic powder leveling equipment, and heating plate detection equipment are modular, and the number can be increased or decreased in time according to the efficiency of each area, thereby ensuring that each device can operate efficiently.

[0028] Compared with existing technologies, this invention offers the following advantages: By configuring appropriate logistics lines, rationally dividing production areas, and dynamically adjusting the number of equipment, the present invention's thermal battery heater production line is highly flexible and can be used to efficiently produce heaters of varying diameters and weights. With this invention, the production line's process balance rate can reach 90%-95.5%, surpassing the 65%-85% achieved with existing technologies. This improves production efficiency and makes it more suitable for thermal battery production. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the specific embodiments of the present invention, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0030] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the production line layout described in Example 1 of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the production line layout described in Example 2 of the present invention;

[0032] In the figure, 1-weighing area; 11-U-shaped logistics line; 12-automatic powder weighing equipment; 2-spreading area; 21-first U-shaped logistics line; 22-automatic flattening equipment; 23-L-shaped logistics line; 3-pressing area; 31-conveyor line; 32-press; 4-detection area; 41-second U-shaped logistics line; 42-heating plate detection equipment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The present invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. However, it should not be understood that the scope of the subject matter described in the present invention is limited to the following embodiments. Without departing from the above technical ideas of the present invention, various modifications, substitutions and changes made according to common technical knowledge and customary means in the field are included in the scope of the present invention.

[0034] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is the lack of flexibility in the existing thermal battery heater production line and the low efficiency of each single machine. Through the comprehensive design of the production line and appropriate logistics, the vacancy rate of each single machine is reduced, and the high-efficiency and high-flexibility production requirements of thermal battery heaters of different specifications can be achieved by adjusting the number of equipment.

[0035] Analysis revealed the limited flexibility of thermal battery heater production lines: The production line relies on mechanical replication of individual units, lacking coordination and integration between them. By implementing appropriate logistics lines, rationally dividing production areas, and dynamically adjusting the number of equipment, the present invention achieves a highly flexible production line for thermal battery heaters, enabling the efficient production of heaters of varying diameters and weights. This approach achieves a process balance rate of 90%-95.5%, surpassing the 65%-85% achieved with existing technologies. This improves production efficiency and makes it more suitable for thermal battery production.

[0036] Example 1, reference Figure 1

[0037] When this production line is used to produce a heating plate with a diameter of 36mm and a powder weight of 2.2g, the working time of each powder weighing device is 15s, the working time of each powder leveling device is 20s, the working time of each powder pressing device is 18s, and the working time of each heating plate detection device is 15s. Adjust the production line as follows:

[0038] (1) The production line is divided into four parts, namely, weighing area 1, spreading area 2, pressing area 3 and testing area 4. Each area is connected by automatic logistics. The weighing area 1 is connected to the powder spreading equipment 22 of the spreading area 2 by a "mouth"-shaped logistics line 11; the spreading area 2 is connected to the testing area 4 by an "L"-shaped logistics line 23; the spreading area 2 is connected to the press 32 of the pressing area 3 by a first "U"-shaped logistics line 21; the pressing area 3 is connected to the second "U"-shaped logistics line 41 of the testing area 4 by a conveyor line 31.

[0039] (2) The weighing area consists of three automatic powder weighing devices 13, a "mouth"-shaped logistics line 11, and a robot. The robot places the material tray on the tray of the "mouth"-shaped logistics line 11, and then places the empty material tray on the automatic powder weighing device 12 to weigh the powder. The "mouth"-shaped logistics line 11 transfers the tray with powder to the spreading area 2.

[0040] (3) The spreading area 2 consists of four automatic powder spreading devices 22, a first U-shaped logistics line 21, and a robot. The L-shaped logistics line 23 transports the molds from the testing area 4 to the automatic powder spreading device 22. The robot then transports the powder and molds into the automatic powder spreading device 22. After the powder spreading is completed, the robot transports the molds filled with powder to the first U-shaped logistics line 21 and transports them to the pressing area 3.

[0041] (4) The pressing area 3 consists of four presses 32 and a conveyor line 31. The tableting mold is transported to the press by the conveyor line 31 for pressing and molding, and then transported to the second "U"-shaped logistics line 41 of the testing area 4 by the conveyor line 31.

[0042] (5) The detection area 4 consists of a second "U"-shaped material flow line body 41, three heating sheet detection devices 42, and a manipulator. The manipulator places the heating sheet on the mold onto the detection device for inspection, and transports the mold to the "L"-shaped material flow line 23 for reflux to the spreading area 2.

[0043] When preparing a heating sheet with a diameter of 36 mm and a powder amount of 2.2 g by the above method, the process balance rate of this production line is (15 / 3 + 20 / 4 + 18 / 4 + 15 / 3) / 5 * 4 = 90%.

[0044] Example 2, refer to Figure 2

[0045] When preparing a heating sheet with a diameter of 86 mm and a powder amount of 12.0 g, the working time of each powder weighing device is 23 s, the working time of each powder spreading device is 35 s, the working time of each powder pressing device is 18 s, and the working time of each powder spreading device is 15 s. Adjust the production line according to the following steps:

[0046] (1) The production line is divided into four parts, namely the weighing area 1, the spreading area 2, the pressing area 3, and the detection area 4. Each area is connected by an automatic material flow. Among them, the weighing area 1 is connected to the powder spreading device 22 in the spreading area 2 by an "open" - shaped material flow line 11; the spreading area 2 is connected to the detection area 4 by an "L" - shaped material flow line 23, and the spreading area 2 is connected to the press 32 device in the pressing area 3 by a first "U" - shaped material flow line 21; the pressing area 3 is connected to the second "U" - shaped material flow line 41 in the detection area 4 by a conveyor line 31.

[0047] (2) The weighing area consists of 5 powder automatic weighing devices, an "open" - shaped material flow line 11, and a manipulator. The manipulator places the tray on the tray of the "open" - shaped material flow line 11, and then places the empty tray on the powder automatic weighing 12 device to weigh the powder. The "open" - shaped material flow line 11 transports the tray with the powder to the spreading area 2.

[0048] (3) The spreading area consists of 7 powder automatic spreading devices 22, a first "U" - shaped material flow line 21, and a manipulator. The "L" - shaped material flow line 23 transports the mold in the detection area 4 to the powder automatic spreading device 22, and then the manipulator sends the powder and the mold into the powder automatic spreading device 22. After spreading the powder, the manipulator transports the mold with the powder onto the first "U" - shaped material flow line 21 for transportation to the pressing area 3.

[0049] (4) The pressing area consists of 4 presses 32 and a conveyor line 31 body. The production mold is transported into the press by the conveyor line 31 for pressing and forming, and then the production mold is transported to the second "U" - shaped material flow line 41 in the detection area 4 by the conveyor line 31 body.

[0050] (5) The inspection area consists of a second "U"-shaped logistics line 41, five heating plate inspection devices 42, and a robot. The robot places the heating plate on the mold on the inspection device for inspection, and then moves the mold to the "L"-shaped logistics line 23 and returns it to the spreading area 2.

[0051] When a heating plate with a diameter of 86 mm and a powder weight of 12.0 g is prepared by the above method, the process balance rate of this production line is (23 / 5+35 / 7+18 / 4+15 / 3) / 5*4=95.5%.

[0052] Comparative Example 1

[0053] When preparing a heating plate with a diameter of 36mm and a powder weight of 2.2g, the operating time of each powder weighing device is 15s, the operating time of each powder leveling device is 20s, the operating time of each powder pressing device is 18s, and the operating time of each heating plate testing device is 15s. The process balance rate of this production line is (15+20+18+15) / 20*4=85%;

[0054] Comparative Example 2

[0055] When producing a heating plate with an 86mm diameter and 12.0g of powder, the operating time of each powder weighing device is 23s, the operating time of each powder leveling device is 35s, the operating time of each powder pressing device is 18s, and the operating time of each powder leveling device is 15s. The process balance rate of this production line is (23 + 35 + 18 + 15) / 35 * 4 = 65%.

[0056] In summary, by adopting the production line of the present invention for production, the production line process balance rate can reach 90%-95.5%, which is better than the 65%-85% of the prior art, thereby improving production efficiency and being more suitable for thermal battery production.

[0057] The above is a detailed introduction to the highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters provided by the present invention. This article uses specific examples to illustrate the structure and working principle of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only intended to help understand the method and core concept of the present invention. It should be noted that, for those skilled in the art, various improvements and modifications may be made to the present invention without departing from the principles of the present invention, and such improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A highly flexible production line for thermal battery heaters, characterized by: include Weighing area (1): including a square-shaped logistics line (11) and several sets of powder automatic weighing equipment (12) connected thereto; Spreading area (2): including a first U-shaped logistics line (21) and several sets of powder automatic spreading equipment (22) connected thereto; The pressing area (3) comprises a plurality of presses (32) and a plurality of conveying lines (31) connected to both ends of the presses (32) and communicating therewith; Detection area (4): including a second U-shaped logistics line (41) and several sets of heating plate detection equipment (42) connected thereto; The U-shaped logistics line (11) of the weighing area (1) is connected to the automatic powder flattening device (12) of the spreading area (2), the first U-shaped logistics line of the spreading area (2) is connected to the press (32) of the pressing area (3), the conveying line (31) of the pressing area (3) is connected to the second U-shaped logistics line (41) of the detection area (4), and the spreading area (2) is also equipped with an L-shaped logistics line (23) connected to the detection area (4).

2. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: The weighing area (1), spreading area (2), pressing area (3) and testing area (4) are all equipped with manipulators.

3. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the weighing area (1), the robot places the empty material tray on the tray of the U-shaped logistics line (11), and the robot puts the empty material tray into the automatic powder weighing device (12) to weigh the powder. Then the robot puts the material tray filled with powder back on the tray of the U-shaped logistics line (11), and transports the material tray filled with powder to the connection point between the weighing area (1) and the spreading area (2), and the robot transfers the powder in the material tray to the automatic spreading device (22) of the spreading area (2).

4. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the spreading area (2), the L-shaped logistics line (23) transports the mold in the detection area (4) to the automatic powder flattening device (22), and then the tray with powder in the weighing area (1) is transferred by a robot to pour the powder into the mold, and the tray is returned to the weighing area (1), and the powder is flattened in the automatic powder flattening device (22). After the powder is spread, the robot transports the mold with powder to the first U-shaped logistics line (21) and transports it to the pressing area (3).

5. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the pressing area (3), the mold is pressed into shape in the mold transport press (32) through the conveying line (31), and then the mold equipped with the heating plate is transported to the second U-shaped logistics line (41) of the detection area (4) through the conveying line (31).

6. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the inspection area (4), the robot places the mold in the heating plate inspection device (42) to inspect the heating plate. After passing the inspection, the heating plate is taken out and the mold is then transported to the L-shaped logistics line by the robot and returned to the spreading area (2).

7. The highly flexible manufacturing production line for thermal battery heaters according to claim 1, characterized in that: The equipment such as the automatic powder weighing device (12), the automatic powder leveling device (22), the heating plate detection device (42) are modularized and can be increased or decreased in number according to the efficiency of each area, thereby ensuring that each equipment can operate efficiently.

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