Gluing method, device and computer program product for an electric cell

Abstract

The application provides a gluing method and device of an electric core and a computer program product. The method comprises: controlling a moving mechanism to drive a gluing mechanism to glue the electric core in a tray, and collecting an image of the glued electric core; judging whether the gluing of the electric core is qualified according to the image; and in the case that the number of unqualified electric cores is not more than a first number, controlling a replacement mechanism to move the unqualified electric cores to a discharge area, and moving the same number of electric cores in a buffer area to the tray. The gluing method of the electric core provided by the application integrates the gluing, image collection, qualification judgment and NG electric core replacement functions in the same operation process, improves the production line automation rate, reduces the labor cost in the production process, and improves the production efficiency of the battery.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of battery manufacturing technology, and more specifically, to a method, apparatus, and computer program product for coating a battery cell. Background Technology

[0002] In the automated production of batteries, cell coating is a critical process step. Cell coating refers to applying a layer of reactive polyurethane hot melt adhesive (PUR adhesive) to the short side or designated edges of the cells before stacking them. This achieves adhesion, buffering, and insulation between the cells, thereby ensuring the stability and safety of the module structure. Because the adhesive has a short active window, the cell pressing process is usually required to be completed within 15 minutes after coating; otherwise, the adhesive will surface dry and fail, requiring removal and recoating.

[0003] Traditional battery cell coating methods typically involve sending a logistics pallet containing multiple battery cells to a coating station where a separate coating unit completes the coating process. Subsequently, the pallet is moved to another visual inspection station where a fixed camera photographs and assesses the quality of the coated battery cells. If the coating is found to be substandard (i.e., NG), manual intervention is required to remove the NG battery cells, re-coat them, and then put them back on the pallet.

[0004] However, traditional cell coating methods rely too heavily on manual labor, resulting in high labor costs and insufficient production efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this application is to provide a method, apparatus and computer program product for coating battery cells. By integrating coating, image acquisition, qualification judgment and NG battery cell replacement functions into the same work process, the automation rate of the production line can be improved, the labor cost in the production process can be reduced and the production efficiency of batteries can be improved.

[0006] In a first aspect, this application provides a method for applying adhesive to battery cells, comprising: controlling a moving mechanism to drive an adhesive application mechanism to apply adhesive to battery cells in a tray, and acquiring an image of the coated battery cells; determining, based on the image, whether the adhesive application to the battery cells is qualified; and, if the number of unqualified battery cells does not exceed a first quantity, controlling a replacement mechanism to move the unqualified battery cells to a discharge area, and moving the same number of battery cells from the buffer area to the tray.

[0007] The above-mentioned cell coating method integrates coating, image acquisition, qualification judgment and NG cell replacement into the same workflow, effectively solving the problems of high labor costs and insufficient production efficiency caused by excessive reliance on manual labor in traditional cell coating processes. This improves the automation rate of the production line, reduces labor costs in the production process, and increases the production efficiency of batteries.

[0008] In conjunction with the first aspect, optionally, after determining whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the image, the method further includes: if the number of battery cells with unqualified adhesive coating is 0, controlling the logistics mechanism to send the pallet to the next workstation and receive the next pallet.

[0009] The above-mentioned glue coating method for battery cells reduces the risk of defective products flowing downstream by releasing them to the next workstation only if all battery cells in a tray are OK, thus ensuring the quality of glue coating for battery cells.

[0010] In conjunction with the first aspect, optionally, before the control moving mechanism drives the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray and acquires an image of the glued battery cells, the method further includes: determining that the glue-applying conditions are met; wherein the glue-applying conditions include: the number of free battery cell positions in the discharge area is greater than or equal to the first number and / or the number of battery cells in the buffer area is greater than or equal to the first number.

[0011] The above-mentioned cell coating method, by setting preconditions before starting the coating process to check the buffer area and the discharge area, effectively prevents process interruptions or logic errors caused by insufficient cell placement in the buffer area and / or the discharge area. This improves the robustness and unmanned operation capability of the cell coating method provided in this application, thereby further reducing labor costs in the production process and further improving battery production efficiency.

[0012] In conjunction with the first aspect, optionally, determining whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the image includes: performing geometric feature recognition on the image to obtain geometric feature parameters of the adhesive-coated area in the image; and determining whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the geometric feature parameters.

[0013] The above-mentioned coating method for battery cells improves the detection accuracy and repeatability by using geometric feature parameters to judge the quality of coating, thereby ensuring the quality of battery cell coating and the automation of battery cell production, further reducing labor costs in the production process, and further improving battery production efficiency.

[0014] In conjunction with the first aspect, optionally, the geometric feature parameters include center coordinate parameters; the step of performing geometric feature recognition on the image to obtain the geometric feature parameters of the glued area in the image includes: converting the image into a grayscale image; identifying the outline of the glued area from the grayscale image; and determining the center point coordinates of two opposite edges based on the outline, and calculating the center coordinate parameters corresponding to the center point coordinates.

[0015] The aforementioned adhesive coating method for battery cells, through a series of processing steps such as grayscale conversion and edge detection, can effectively identify the adhesive coating outline and accurately calculate its center coordinate parameters. This further improves the accuracy and reliability of judging the adhesive coating quality of battery cells, thereby further reducing labor costs in the production process and further improving battery production efficiency.

[0016] In conjunction with the first aspect, optionally, the control and movement mechanism drives the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray and acquires images of the glued battery cells, including: controlling the movement mechanism to drive the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray; and starting image acquisition of the glued battery cells after each battery cell has been glued.

[0017] The above-mentioned adhesive coating method for battery cells reduces time delay by applying adhesive and taking pictures simultaneously, thereby further improving the efficiency of adhesive coating for battery cells.

[0018] Secondly, this application provides a battery cell coating device, including a main body, a controller, a coating mechanism, a moving mechanism, an image acquisition mechanism, a replacement mechanism, a discharge area, and a buffer area; the controller is electrically connected to the coating mechanism, the moving mechanism, the image acquisition mechanism, and the replacement mechanism respectively; the mounting end of the moving mechanism is connected to the top of the main body, and the moving end of the moving mechanism is connected to the moving mechanism, the coating mechanism, the image acquisition mechanism, and the replacement mechanism respectively; the discharge area and the buffer area are located at the bottom of the main body respectively; the moving mechanism is used to drive the coating mechanism under the control of the controller, the coating mechanism is used to coat the battery cells in the tray with glue under the control of the controller, and the image acquisition mechanism is used to acquire images of the coated battery cells; the controller is also used to determine whether the coating of the battery cells is qualified based on the images; the replacement mechanism is used to control the replacement mechanism to move the unqualified battery cells to the discharge area and move the same number of battery cells from the buffer area to the tray when the number of unqualified coated battery cells does not exceed a first number.

[0019] The above-described adhesive coating apparatus for battery cells has the same beneficial effects as the adhesive coating method for battery cells provided in the first aspect or any alternative embodiment of the first aspect, and will not be elaborated here.

[0020] In conjunction with the second aspect, the device may optionally further include a logistics mechanism; the logistics mechanism is disposed at the top of the main body and is used for conveying pallets; the logistics mechanism is electrically connected to the controller.

[0021] The aforementioned glue coating device for battery cells, through the control of the logistics mechanism by the controller, further improves the automatic continuous operation capability of the glue coating device for battery cells provided in this application. It eliminates the need for manual pallet handling, effectively ensuring the stability of the production cycle, thereby further improving the efficiency of glue coating for battery cells.

[0022] In conjunction with the second aspect, optionally, the replacement mechanism includes a linear drive and a clamping member; the moving end is provided with a slide rail; the clamping member is slidably connected to the moving end via the slide rail; wherein the guide of the slide rail is consistent with the arrangement direction of the top and bottom ends of the main body; the linear drive is disposed on the mounting end; the driving end of the linear drive is connected to the clamping member.

[0023] The aforementioned cell coating device, through its independent drive and slide rail guide design, achieves more reliable vertical gripping, ensuring the normal replacement of cells in the tray and thus ensuring the coating efficiency of the cell coating device.

[0024] Thirdly, this application also provides a computer program product, characterized in that it includes a computer program / instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the method described above.

[0025] The computer program product described above has the same beneficial effects as the coating method for the battery cell provided in the first aspect or any alternative embodiment of the first aspect, which will not be elaborated here. Attached Figure Description

[0026] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments of this application will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of this application and should not be regarded as a limitation of the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0027] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the adhesive application provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating a first method for applying adhesive to a battery cell according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 3 A second flowchart illustrating the adhesive coating method for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 4 A detailed flowchart of step S140 in the adhesive coating method for the battery cell provided in this application embodiment; Figure 5 A detailed flowchart of step S141 in the adhesive coating method for the battery cell provided in this application embodiment; Figure 6A detailed flowchart of step S120 in the adhesive coating method for the battery cell provided in this application embodiment; Figure 7 A perspective view of the adhesive coating apparatus for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 8 A first partial view of the adhesive coating apparatus for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 9 This is a second partial view of the adhesive coating apparatus for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0028] Icons: 100, Glue coating device for battery cell; 110, Main body; 120, Glue coating mechanism; 130, Moving mechanism; 140, Image acquisition mechanism; 150, Replacement mechanism; 151, Linear drive component; 152, Clamping component; 160, Discharge area; 170, Buffer area; 180, Logistics mechanism. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The embodiments of the technical solution of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are only used to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of this application and are therefore merely examples, and should not be used to limit the scope of protection of this application.

[0030] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs; the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit this application.

[0031] In the description of the embodiments of this application, technical terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish different objects and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number, specific order, or primary and secondary relationship of the indicated technical features. In the description of the embodiments of this application, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly defined.

[0032] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the adhesive application process provided in an embodiment of this application. For ease of understanding, the adhesive application method provided in this application will be described first. A continuous strip of PUR adhesive is applied along the length of the short side surface of the battery cell. This adhesive strip is located inside the edge of the battery cell, has a uniform width, and covers a designated area. In actual production, the adhesive is applied at a uniform speed along the short side of the battery cell by a dispensing gun driven by a moving mechanism, forming an adhesive structure with a specific geometric shape. Subsequently, an image acquisition mechanism immediately acquires an image of the area after adhesive application to identify key parameters such as adhesive length, adhesive width, and adhesive edge distance, ensuring that they meet process requirements.

[0033] Please refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2This is a first flowchart illustrating a method for applying adhesive to a battery cell according to an embodiment of this application. The method for applying adhesive to a battery cell according to an embodiment of this application includes: Step S120: Control the moving mechanism to drive the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray, and acquire an image of the battery cells after glue application.

[0034] In step S120 above, the tray can be a logistics carrier for carrying multiple battery cells, and it is provided with positioning grooves or clamps to fix the battery cells. In some embodiments, the tray can hold 4, 6, or 8 battery cells, and the specific number can be flexibly configured according to the production line cycle and equipment layout. The moving mechanism can be a three-axis Cartesian coordinate robotic arm (X / Y / Z axes), and its end is equipped with a glue application mechanism. The glue application mechanism can include a PUR glue gun, and the glue dispensing amount is controlled by air pressure or a screw. During the glue application process, the moving mechanism can drive the glue gun to move at a constant speed along the short side of the battery cell along a preset trajectory to complete continuous glue application. Subsequently, images can be captured by an image acquisition mechanism such as an industrial camera.

[0035] Step S140: Based on the image, determine whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified.

[0036] In step S140 above, after receiving the image from the image acquisition mechanism, the coating morphology is analyzed based on a preset algorithm to determine whether it meets the process standards. For example, the process standards may include the allowable tolerance range of parameters such as adhesive length, adhesive width, and adhesive edge distance. This range can be preset according to different battery models and stored in a database.

[0037] Step S160: If the number of defective cells does not exceed the first quantity, control the replacement mechanism to move the defective cells to the discharge area and move the same number of cells from the buffer area to the tray.

[0038] In step S160 above, the first quantity can be set according to actual production needs, for example, 2, 3, or 4. The replacement mechanism can be an independent pneumatic gripper device, whose Z-axis movement is driven by a cylinder, and X / Y-axis positioning is achieved by a guide rail slider. The discharge area has at least two battery cell placement positions and can be equipped with sensors to detect the presence of battery cells. The buffer area stores spare battery cells that have been pre-applied with adhesive and visually confirmed to be qualified, and the number of these spare cells is not less than the first quantity to ensure replacement availability.

[0039] In one optional implementation, when the tray holds 4 battery cells, the first quantity is set to 2. That is, if the number of NG battery cells is ≤ 2, the automatic replacement process is initiated. The specific replacement process may be that the NG battery cells are moved to the discharge area by the replacement mechanism, and the corresponding number of OK battery cells are taken from the buffer area and placed on the tray. If the number of NG battery cells is > 2, it can be determined as a systemic abnormality and can be handled manually.

[0040] In the above implementation process, by integrating the functions of coating, image acquisition, qualification judgment and NG cell replacement into the same workflow, the problem of high labor costs and insufficient production efficiency caused by excessive reliance on manual labor in the traditional cell coating process is effectively solved. This improves the automation rate of the production line, reduces labor costs in the production process, and improves the production efficiency of batteries.

[0041] Please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 This is a second flowchart of a method for applying adhesive to a battery cell according to an embodiment of this application. In some optional embodiments, after step S160, the method for applying adhesive to a battery cell according to an embodiment of this application further includes: Step S170: If the number of unqualified battery cells is 0, control the logistics mechanism to send the pallet to the next workstation and receive the next pallet.

[0042] In step S170 above, the logistics mechanism can be a roller conveyor, belt conveyor, or AGV trolley, etc., and its start and stop are controlled by a controller. When all cells are OK, the current pallet can be released to flow into the next process, such as the stacking or pressing station. At the same time, the logistics mechanism can be controlled to push the next pallet into the current station, realizing assembly line operation.

[0043] In the above process, the strategy of releasing the battery cells to the next station only when all the cells in a tray are OK reduces the risk of defective products flowing downstream and ensures the quality of the battery cell coating.

[0044] Please continue to refer to Figure 3 In some optional implementations, prior to step S120, the adhesive coating method for the battery cell provided in this application embodiment further includes: Step S110: Determine that the adhesive application conditions are met.

[0045] In step S110 above, the adhesive application conditions include: the number of free cell slots in the discharge area is greater than or equal to a first quantity and / or the number of cells in the buffer area is greater than or equal to a first quantity. The number of free slots in the discharge area can be monitored in real time via photoelectric switches or visual counting. The number of cells in the buffer area can also be dynamically updated via sensors or barcode scanning. Before starting adhesive application, the status of these two areas can be checked: if the remaining free slots in the discharge area are less than the first quantity, it may not be able to accommodate the NG cells that are about to be generated, and there is a probability of overflow; if the number of OK cells in the buffer area is less than the first quantity, automatic replacement may not be able to be completed. If either condition is not met, the processing of the current tray can be paused, and a message "Please clear the discharge area" or "Please replenish the cells in the buffer area" will be displayed on the HMI interface. The operation can continue after the conditions are restored.

[0046] In the above implementation process, by setting preconditions before starting the coating process to check the buffer area and the discharge area, the process interruption or logic error caused by insufficient placement space of the cells in the buffer area and / or the discharge area is effectively prevented. This improves the robustness and unmanned operation capability of the coating method for the cells provided in this application, thereby further reducing the labor cost in the production process and further improving the production efficiency of the battery.

[0047] Please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 A flowchart illustrating step S140 of the adhesive coating method for a battery cell provided in this application embodiment. In some optional embodiments, step S140 includes: Step S141: Perform geometric feature recognition on the image to obtain the geometric feature parameters of the glued area in the image.

[0048] In step S141 above, geometric feature recognition can be achieved through various image processing algorithms. In one embodiment, grayscale thresholding combined with edge detection is used to extract the glue contour. In another embodiment, the white PUR glue region is segmented using the HSV color model. Deep learning models can also be used for semantic segmentation of the glue pixels. The final output is quantifiable geometric feature parameters, such as the glue's length, width, centerline position, and edge distance.

[0049] Step S142: Determine whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the geometric characteristic parameters.

[0050] In step S142 above, the determination can be based on preset threshold rules. For example, the adhesive length must be within a preset adhesive length range, the adhesive width must be within a preset adhesive width range, and the adhesive edge distance must be greater than the adhesive edge distance threshold. If all parameters are satisfied, it is determined to be OK; if any parameter is not satisfied, it is determined to be NG. For those skilled in the art, the range and threshold can be configured according to different battery cell models, adhesive types, etc., and the embodiments of this application do not impose specific limitations in this regard.

[0051] In the above implementation process, by using geometric feature parameters to judge the quality of the adhesive coating, the detection accuracy and repeatability are improved, thereby ensuring the quality of the cell adhesive coating and the automation of cell production, further reducing the labor costs in the production process, and further improving the production efficiency of the battery.

[0052] Please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating step S141 of the adhesive coating method for a battery cell provided in this application embodiment. In some optional embodiments, the geometric feature parameters include center coordinate parameters.

[0053] Accordingly, step S141 includes: Step S1411: Convert the image to a grayscale image.

[0054] In step S1411 above, the grayscale conversion can be performed using a weighted average method or other standard algorithms to highlight the contrast between light and dark areas. Of course, if a black and white camera is used directly, this step can be omitted.

[0055] Step S1412: Identify the outline of the adhesive application from the grayscale image.

[0056] In step S1412 above, the grayscale image can first be denoised using Gaussian filtering, then edges can be extracted using Canny, Sobel, or adaptive thresholding methods, and finally, closed or open glue-shaped contours can be obtained through contour tracking algorithms. For cases of glue breakage, multiple discontinuous contours can also be identified and marked as NG.

[0057] Step S1413: Determine the center point coordinates of the two opposite edges based on the contour, and calculate the center coordinate parameters corresponding to the center point coordinates.

[0058] In step S1413 above, the two opposite edges can specifically refer to the upper and lower boundaries of the adhesive strip in the width direction, such as... Figure 1 The top and bottom edges of the adhesive. This can be along the length of the adhesive, for example... Figure 1 In the horizontal direction, multiple cross-sections are sampled, and the midpoints of the two edges of each cross-section are calculated to fit the centerline; or the minimum bounding rectangle of the entire contour is directly calculated, with its long side midline as a reference. Using the center coordinate parameters, derived parameters such as adhesive edge distance (distance from the centerline to the edge of the cell) and adhesive width can be calculated.

[0059] In the aforementioned process, a series of processing steps, including grayscale conversion and edge detection, are performed on the image to effectively identify the adhesive coating outline and accurately calculate its center coordinate parameters. This further improves the accuracy and reliability of judging the adhesive coating quality of the battery cell, thereby further reducing labor costs in the production process and further improving battery production efficiency.

[0060] Please refer to Figure 6 , Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating step S120 of the adhesive coating method for a battery cell provided in this application embodiment. In some optional embodiments, step S120 includes: Step S121: Control the moving mechanism to drive the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray.

[0061] In step S121 above, the motion trajectory of the moving mechanism can be generated by the controller. The glue application start / end point can be positioned by feedback from the servo encoder.

[0062] Step S122: After each cell is coated with adhesive, image acquisition of the coated cell begins.

[0063] In step S122 above, image acquisition can be performed by an image acquisition mechanism such as an industrial camera mounted on the moving mechanism, and its trigger signal can be issued by the controller according to the current position of the moving mechanism. For example, if the tray contains four battery cells, after the first battery cell is coated with adhesive, the image acquisition mechanism acquires an image of the first battery cell while the second battery cell is being coated with adhesive; after the second battery cell is coated with adhesive, the image acquisition mechanism acquires an image of the second battery cell while the third battery cell is being coated with adhesive; after the third battery cell is coated with adhesive, the image acquisition mechanism acquires an image of the third battery cell while the fourth battery cell is being coated with adhesive; and after the fourth battery cell is coated with adhesive, the image acquisition mechanism acquires an image of the fourth battery cell.

[0064] In the above process, the time delay was reduced by applying adhesive and taking pictures at the same time, thereby further improving the efficiency of adhesive application to the battery cells.

[0065] Please refer to Figures 7 to 9 , Figure 7 A perspective view of the adhesive coating apparatus 100 for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 8 A first partial view of the adhesive coating apparatus 100 for a battery cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 9 This is a second partial view of the battery cell coating apparatus 100 provided in an embodiment of this application. Based on the same concept, this application provides a battery cell coating apparatus 100, characterized in that it includes a main body 110, a controller, a coating mechanism 120, a moving mechanism 130, an image acquisition mechanism 140, a replacement mechanism 150, a discharge area 160, and a buffer area 170. The main body 110 can be a support frame for the entire device, typically made of aluminum profile or sheet metal welded structure.

[0066] The controller is electrically connected to the glue application mechanism 120, the moving mechanism 130, the image acquisition mechanism 140, and the replacement mechanism 150, respectively. Specifically, the controller can be a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) or an industrial PC, etc.

[0067] The mounting end of the moving mechanism 130 is connected to the top of the main body 110, and the moving end of the moving mechanism 130 is connected to the moving mechanism 130, the glue application mechanism 120, the image acquisition mechanism 140, and the replacement mechanism 150. The glue application mechanism 120 may include a PUR glue gun and a glue supply assembly. The PUR glue gun is used to apply reactive polyurethane hot melt adhesive, and the glue supply assembly is used to supply adhesive to the PUR glue gun. Specifically, the moving mechanism 130 may be a three-axis Cartesian coordinate robotic arm (X / Y / Z axes), with its mounting end fixed to the top of the main body 110, and its moving end capable of moving along three-dimensional space. The image acquisition mechanism 140 includes one or more industrial cameras and a light source. As a preferred embodiment, the image acquisition mechanism 140 and the glue application mechanism 120 are mounted together on the moving end to achieve synchronized aerial photography.

[0068] The discharge area 160 and the buffer area 170 are located at the bottom of the main body 110. The discharge area 160 can be used to temporarily store unqualified battery cells, and the buffer area 170 is used to store spare battery cells that have been pre-coated with glue and confirmed to be qualified. Both can be equipped with photoelectric sensors to detect the presence of battery cells.

[0069] The moving mechanism 130, under the control of the controller, drives the gluing mechanism 120 to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray. The image acquisition mechanism 140 is used to acquire images of the glued battery cells. The controller is also used to determine whether the glue application to the battery cells is qualified based on the images. The replacement mechanism 150, when the number of unqualified glued battery cells does not exceed a first quantity, controls the replacement mechanism 150 to move the unqualified battery cells to the discharge area 160 and move the same number of battery cells from the buffer area 170 to the tray.

[0070] In other words, the controller can run the cell coating method described above, and control the moving mechanism 130, coating mechanism 120, image acquisition mechanism 140 and replacement mechanism 150 to perform the corresponding steps in the cell coating method.

[0071] The above implementation process can be the same as the adhesive coating method for the battery cell described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0072] Please continue to refer to Figure 7 In some optional embodiments, the battery cell coating apparatus 100 provided in this application embodiment further includes a logistics mechanism 180. The logistics mechanism 180 is disposed at the top of the main body 110 and is used for conveying a pallet. The logistics mechanism 180 is electrically connected to a controller.

[0073] The logistics mechanism 180 can be a roller conveyor, belt conveyor, or chain conveyor, and can extend along the production line through the top of the main body 110 to deliver pallets loaded with battery cells into or out of the gluing station. The controller can control the start and stop of the logistics mechanism 180 based on the detection results. Specifically, when all battery cells on the pallet are OK, the logistics mechanism 180 starts to release the current pallet and transport the next pallet; otherwise, it pauses the flow until the NG battery cells are processed.

[0074] In the above implementation process, the controller controls the logistics mechanism 180, which further improves the automatic continuous operation capability of the glue coating device 100 for battery cells provided in this application embodiment. It eliminates the need for manual pallet handling, effectively ensures the stability of the production cycle, and thus further improves the efficiency of glue coating for battery cells.

[0075] Please continue to refer to Figure 8 In some alternative embodiments, the replacement mechanism 150 includes a linear drive 151 and a clamping member 152.

[0076] The mobile terminal is equipped with a slide rail. The clamping member 152 is slidably connected to the mobile terminal via the slide rail. The guide direction of the slide rail is consistent with the arrangement direction of the top and bottom ends of the main body 110. The slide rail can be a double-guide-rail slider structure, along the Z-direction, that is... Figure 8 The vertical arrangement within.

[0077] A linear drive unit 151 is mounted on the mounting end. The drive end of the linear drive unit 151 is connected to the clamping member 152. The linear drive unit 151 can be a cylinder or an electric push rod. Taking a cylinder as an example, the cylinder body is fixed to the mounting end of the moving mechanism 130, and the piston rod is vertically downward connected to the clamping member 152. The clamping member 152 can be a pneumatic or electric gripper to accommodate the gripping of battery cells of different widths.

[0078] When the controller issues a replacement command, the moving mechanism 130 first moves the clamping member 152 directly above the NG cell, the linear drive member 151 drives the gripper to descend and close to grab it, then raises it to a predetermined height, moves it to the discharge area 160 to release it, and then goes to the buffer area 170 to grab the OK cell and put it back in the original position of the tray.

[0079] In the above implementation process, by adopting an independent drive and slide rail guide design, more reliable vertical gripping is achieved, ensuring the normal replacement of the battery cells in the tray, thereby ensuring the gluing efficiency of the battery cell gluing device 100.

[0080] Based on the same concept, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product. This computer program product includes a computer program or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are executed by a processor, they can implement the methods described in any embodiment of this application.

[0081] The computer program product may be embodied on one or more computer-readable media. The computer-readable media may be, but is not limited to, volatile memory (such as random access memory RAM), non-volatile memory (such as read-only memory ROM, programmable read-only memory PROM, erasable programmable read-only memory EPROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory EEPROM, flash memory), magnetic storage devices (such as hard disk drives, magnetic tapes), optical storage devices (such as optical disc CD-ROM, digital versatile optical disc DVD), or any suitable combination of the above.

[0082] Specifically, the computer program or instructions may be stored in the computer-readable medium. When the computer-readable medium containing the computer program or instructions is loaded onto an electronic device with processing capabilities, the processor of the electronic device is able to read and execute the computer program or instructions. The processor's execution of the instructions causes the electronic device to perform the method steps described in the embodiments of this application.

[0083] Those skilled in the art will understand that the computer program product can exist in various forms, including but not limited to: Standalone packaged software: Software packages that are stored on physical media (such as CDs, USB flash drives, and memory cards) and sold or distributed independently.

[0084] Pre-installed software: Firmware or part of the system / application software that has been pre-programmed or installed in the device's memory (such as ROM, Flash) at the factory.

[0085] Network distribution: Software installation packages, update packages, or applications downloaded or streamed from servers, app stores (such as Apple App Store, Google Play), software repositories, etc. via the Internet, mobile networks, etc.

[0086] Embedded software: As part of the control system of specialized equipment (such as medical imaging equipment, industrial testing equipment), it is stored in the internal memory of the device.

[0087] Cloud Service / SaaS: Deployed in a cloud computing environment, users remotely access and invoke the program's functions through client software, web browsers, or application programming interfaces (APIs) (i.e., the "Software as a Service" model). In this case, the program's execution occurs on a cloud server, but the instructions themselves and the core logic for implementing their functions still fall under the category of the computer program product.

[0088] License key / activation code: A digital key separate from the main program but used to unlock or activate the program to enable the functions of the method, and is considered part of or an accessory to the product.

[0089] Regardless of the specific form in which the computer program product is provided or distributed, as long as the computer program or instructions contained therein can implement the methods described in the embodiments of this application when executed by a processor, they fall within the protection scope of the computer program product described in this embodiment.

[0090] The computer program product in this embodiment can be used to cause an electronic device with processing capabilities to perform the steps in the various methods provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0091] The controller can be a microprocessor (MCU), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a programmable logic device (FPGA).

[0092] It should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods can also be implemented in other ways, given the several embodiments provided in this application. The apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of apparatus, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of this application. In this regard, each block in a flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which contains one or more executable instructions for implementing a specified logical function. It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than those marked in the drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks may actually be executed substantially in parallel, or they may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in a block diagram and / or flowchart, and combinations of blocks in block diagrams and / or flowcharts, can be implemented using a dedicated hardware-based system that performs the specified function or action, or using a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0093] In addition, the functional modules in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated together to form an independent part, or each module can exist independently, or two or more modules can be integrated to form an independent part.

[0094] The above description is only an optional implementation of the embodiments of this application, but the protection scope of the embodiments of this application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the embodiments of this application should be covered within the protection scope of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A method for coating a battery cell with adhesive, characterized in that, include: The control movement mechanism drives the glue application mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray, and captures images of the battery cells after glue application; Based on the image, determine whether the adhesive application to the battery cell is qualified; and If the number of defective battery cells does not exceed a first quantity, the control replacement mechanism moves the defective battery cells to the discharge area and moves the same number of battery cells from the buffer area to the tray.

2. The coating method for the battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, After determining whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the image, the method further includes: If the number of battery cells with substandard adhesive coating is 0, the logistics control mechanism will send the pallet to the next workstation and receive the next pallet.

3. The coating method for the battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before the control and movement mechanism drives the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray and before acquiring an image of the glued battery cells, the method further includes: The adhesive application conditions are determined to be met; wherein the adhesive application conditions include: the number of free cell positions in the discharge area is greater than or equal to the first number and / or the number of cells in the buffer area is greater than or equal to the first number.

4. The coating method for the battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of determining whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified based on the image includes: Geometric feature recognition is performed on the image to obtain the geometric feature parameters of the adhesive-coated area in the image; and The quality of the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is determined based on the geometric feature parameters.

5. The coating method for the battery cell according to claim 4, characterized in that, in, The geometric feature parameters include the center coordinate parameters; The step of performing geometric feature recognition on the image to obtain the geometric feature parameters of the glued area in the image includes: Convert the image to a grayscale image; The outline of the adhesive application is identified from the grayscale image; and The center point coordinates of the two opposite edges are determined based on the contour, and the center coordinate parameters corresponding to the center point coordinates are calculated.

6. The coating method for the battery cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control and movement mechanism drives the glue-applying mechanism to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray, and acquires images of the battery cells after glue application, including: The control mechanism moves the adhesive applicator to apply adhesive to the battery cells in the tray; and Once the adhesive coating of one of the battery cells is completed, image acquisition of the coated battery cell begins.

7. A coating apparatus for a battery cell, characterized in that, It includes the main body, controller, glue application mechanism, moving mechanism, image acquisition mechanism, replacement mechanism, discharge area, and buffer area; The controller is electrically connected to the glue application mechanism, the moving mechanism, the image acquisition mechanism, and the replacement mechanism, respectively. The mounting end of the moving mechanism is connected to the top of the main body, and the moving end of the moving mechanism is connected to the moving mechanism, the glue application mechanism, the image acquisition mechanism, and the replacement mechanism respectively. The discharge area and the buffer area are located at the bottom of the main body, respectively; The moving mechanism is used to drive the glue-applying mechanism under the control of the controller. The glue-applying mechanism is used to apply glue to the battery cells in the tray under the control of the controller. The image acquisition mechanism is used to acquire images of the battery cells after glue application. The controller is also used to determine, based on the image, whether the adhesive coating applied to the battery cell is qualified; The replacement mechanism is used to control the replacement mechanism to move the defective battery cells to the discharge area and move the same number of battery cells from the buffer area to the tray when the number of defective battery cells does not exceed a first quantity.

8. The adhesive coating apparatus for a battery cell according to claim 7, characterized in that, The device also includes a logistics mechanism; The logistics mechanism is located at the top of the main body and is used for transporting pallets; The logistics unit is electrically connected to the controller.

9. The adhesive coating apparatus for a battery cell according to claim 7, characterized in that, The replacement mechanism includes a linear drive component and a clamping component; The mobile terminal is equipped with a sliding rail; The clamping member is slidably connected to the moving end via the slide rail; wherein the guide of the slide rail is consistent with the arrangement direction of the top and bottom ends of the main body; The linear drive component is disposed on the mounting end; The driving end of the linear drive is connected to the clamping member.

10. A computer program product, characterized in that, Includes a computer program / instruction that, when executed by a processor, implements the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

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