Welding apparatus and method of controlling the same

Abstract

The application provides a welding device and a control method thereof. The welding device can be used for welding and assembling a shell cover and a shell body into a shell. The welding device comprises a machine table and a clamping mechanism, a welding head and a driving mechanism installed on the machine table. The machine table can provide a reference plane for the clamping mechanism, the welding head and the driving mechanism. The clamping mechanism is configured to clamp the shell. The included angle between the light emitting direction of the welding head and the surface of the shell cover is obtuse, and the included angle between the light emitting direction of the welding head and the surface of the shell body is acute. The driving mechanism is configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move, and the driving mechanism comprises a linkage X-axis driving assembly, a Y-axis driving assembly and an R-axis driving assembly. The welding device provided by the application can improve the problem of incomplete welding of a vertical welding steel shell battery.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of welding processing technology, and in particular to a welding device and its control method. Background Technology

[0002] With the increasing demand for consumer batteries, steel-cased batteries are widely used in this type of battery product due to their high strength and good sealing structure.

[0003] In the production and assembly process of steel-cased batteries, the casing and the outer shell need to be sealed and welded together. The quality of this welding directly affects the quality and safety of the battery. Welding equipment for steel-cased batteries in related technologies typically employs a vertical welding method, where the welding head is perpendicular to the surface of the casing.

[0004] However, welding steel-cased batteries using a vertical welding method results in incomplete welding, which seriously affects the welding quality of the steel-cased batteries. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a welding device and its control method, which can improve the problem of incomplete welding of vertically welded steel-cased batteries.

[0006] One aspect of this application provides a welding device for welding a cover and a housing together to form an outer shell. The welding device includes: a machine base; a clamping mechanism mounted on the machine base and configured to clamp the outer shell; a welding head mounted on the machine base, wherein the angle between the welding head's light emission direction and the surface of the cover is obtuse, and the angle between the welding head and the surface of the housing is acute; and a driving mechanism mounted on the machine base and configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move. The driving mechanism includes a linked X-axis driving assembly, a Y-axis driving assembly, and an R-axis driving assembly.

[0007] In one possible implementation, the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the shell is in the range of 100°-150°.

[0008] In one possible implementation, the X-axis drive assembly is mounted on the machine base, the Y-axis drive assembly is mounted on the X-axis drive assembly, and the R-axis drive assembly is mounted on the Y-axis drive assembly.

[0009] In one possible implementation, it further includes: a touch screen having a welding trajectory set thereon; and a controller electrically connected to the touch screen and the drive mechanism, the controller being configured to read the welding trajectory and control the movement of the drive mechanism according to the welding trajectory.

[0010] Another aspect of this application provides a control method for welding equipment, comprising: setting a welding trajectory, wherein the trajectory type of the welding trajectory includes a straight trajectory and a circular arc trajectory; determining the trajectory type of the current trajectory, and determining the control program to be executed based on the trajectory type; controlling the movement of a drive mechanism based on the position information of the current trajectory and the control program; and the drive mechanism driving one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move to complete the welding of the current trajectory.

[0011] In one possible implementation, the trajectory type of the current trajectory is determined, and the control program to be executed is determined based on the trajectory type, including: when the trajectory type of the current trajectory is a straight line trajectory, a straight line trajectory control program is executed; when the trajectory type of the current trajectory is a circular arc trajectory, a circular arc trajectory control program is executed.

[0012] In one possible implementation, when the current trajectory is a straight trajectory, straight trajectory interpolation is performed based on the position information of the current trajectory to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

[0013] In one possible implementation, when the current trajectory is an arc trajectory, it is determined whether the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory based on the position information of the current trajectory; wherein, when the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, the X-axis drive component, Y-axis drive component and R-axis drive component in the drive mechanism are activated; when the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, the X-axis drive component and Y-axis drive component are activated.

[0014] In one possible implementation, when the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, before activating the X-axis drive assembly, Y-axis drive assembly, and R-axis drive assembly in the drive mechanism, the following step is further included: according to the formula... Calculate the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component; where, The coordinate position of the R-axis drive component. This refers to the coordinate position of the X-axis drive component or the Y-axis drive component. , , All are coefficients; the movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component are coupled with the movement trajectory of the R-axis drive component, respectively, and circular arc trajectory interpolation is performed based on the position information of the current trajectory to obtain the movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component.

[0015] In one possible implementation, when the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, before starting the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component, the method further includes: determining the direction of the arc trajectory based on the current trajectory position information; performing arc trajectory interpolation to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

[0016] The welding equipment and control method provided in this application can be used to weld a cover and a housing together to form an outer shell. The welding equipment includes a machine base and a clamping mechanism, a welding head, and a drive mechanism mounted on the machine base. The machine base provides a reference plane for the clamping mechanism, the welding head, and the drive mechanism. The clamping mechanism is configured to clamp the outer shell. The angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the cover is obtuse, and the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the housing is acute. The drive mechanism is configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move, and the drive mechanism includes a linked X-axis drive assembly, a Y-axis drive assembly, and an R-axis drive assembly.

[0017] Compared to a vertically incident laser beam with energy concentrated at the center of the gap, which may result in incomplete fusion defects due to insufficient melting of the base materials on both sides, an oblique incident laser beam distributes energy elliptically along the gap direction. This allows the base materials on both sides of the gap to absorb more energy simultaneously, ensuring full fusion. Furthermore, oblique welding has a weld width expansion effect; as the angle of inclination increases, the weld width also increases, effectively covering local misalignments between the cover and the shell caused by dimensional deviations.

[0018] This welding technique, which uses a welding head tilted towards the casing, allows for greater weld coverage, resulting in a wider weld area and stronger weld containment. It also enhances weld strength, suppresses welding defects, and improves the seal between the casing and the casing, thereby addressing the issue of incomplete welding of vertically welded steel-cased batteries.

[0019] Meanwhile, the drive mechanism is configured to drive the clamping mechanism or one of the welding heads to move. The drive mechanism includes a linked X-axis drive assembly, Y-axis drive assembly, and R-axis drive assembly. Since only three axes are involved in the coordinated movement throughout the welding process, the mechanism design is relatively simple, offers good safety, and enables continuous and precise welding.

[0020] By rationally adjusting the light emission method and employing multi-axis linkage control of the X, Y, and R axes to control the welding trajectory, the problem of incomplete welding of steel-cased batteries in existing technologies can be effectively solved, thereby improving battery quality and safety at the production end. Furthermore, the entire equipment has a simple structure and is easy to operate, which is conducive to improving the production efficiency of steel-cased batteries. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a welding device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the composition of a welding device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic flowchart illustrating a control method for welding equipment provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating another control method for welding equipment provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0026] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0027] 10-Welding equipment; 20-Outer casing; 21-Casing cover; 22-Casing body;

[0028] 100-machine station;

[0029] 200 - Clamping mechanism;

[0030] 300-welding head;

[0031] 400 - Drive mechanism; 410 - X-axis drive assembly; 420 - Y-axis drive assembly; 430 - R-axis drive assembly;

[0032] 500 - Touchscreen;

[0033] 600-Controller. Detailed Implementation

[0034] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0035] With the increasing demand for consumer batteries, steel-cased batteries are widely used in consumer battery products due to their high strength and good sealing structure. During the production and assembly of steel-cased batteries, the casing and the outer shell need to be sealed and welded together, and the quality of this welding directly affects the quality and safety of the battery.

[0036] In related technologies, welding equipment for steel-cased batteries typically employs a vertical welding method to weld the casing and the outer shell, with the welding head perpendicular to the surface of the casing. However, this vertical welding method for steel-cased batteries suffers from incomplete welding, severely impacting the overall welding quality.

[0037] For example, due to process deviations during the molding of the casing and cover, as well as differences in the properties of the substrate materials and potential dimensional fluctuations, there may be dimensional discrepancies between the cover and the casing of a steel-cased battery. Specifically, the actual dimensions at the mating point between the cover and the casing deviate from the design requirements and exceed the allowable deviation range, preventing them from achieving an ideal fit and seal.

[0038] A common out-of-tolerance issue is excessive radial (circumferential) clearance. In one case, the clearance between the outer circle of the cover and the inner circle of the housing is too large, causing the cover to wobble after being placed in the housing. There are obvious local or overall gaps in the circumferential direction, which makes subsequent welding prone to misalignment, difficult to fuse, and may even affect the battery's airtightness.

[0039] In another case, if the clearance between the outer circle of the cover and the inner circle of the housing is too small, the cover cannot be installed into the housing smoothly. Forcing it in may cause deformation (concavity) of the housing sidewall or damage to the edge of the cover, which will also fail to meet the sealing requirements.

[0040] Therefore, when the welding head is perpendicular to the cover during welding, the cover and the casing cannot be completely welded together, the connection between the casing and the cover is unstable, the sealing is poor, and this seriously affects the welding quality and safety of the battery.

[0041] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide a welding device and a control method thereof. The welding device can be used to weld a cover and a housing together to form a shell. The welding device includes a machine base and a clamping mechanism, a welding head, and a drive mechanism mounted on the machine base. The machine base provides a reference plane for the clamping mechanism, the welding head, and the drive mechanism. The clamping mechanism is configured to clamp the shell. The angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the cover is obtuse, and the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the housing is acute. The drive mechanism is configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move, and the drive mechanism includes a linked X-axis drive assembly, a Y-axis drive assembly, and an R-axis drive assembly.

[0042] Compared to a vertically incident laser beam with energy concentrated at the center of the gap, which may result in incomplete fusion defects due to insufficient melting of the base materials on both sides, an oblique incident laser beam distributes energy elliptically along the gap direction. This allows the base materials on both sides of the gap to absorb more energy simultaneously, ensuring full fusion. Furthermore, oblique welding has a weld width expansion effect; as the angle of inclination increases, the weld width also increases, effectively covering local misalignments between the cover and the shell caused by dimensional deviations.

[0043] This welding technique, which uses a welding head tilted towards the casing, allows for greater weld coverage, resulting in a wider weld area and stronger weld containment. It also enhances weld strength, suppresses welding defects, and improves the seal between the casing and the casing, thereby addressing the issue of incomplete welding of vertically welded steel-cased batteries.

[0044] Meanwhile, the drive mechanism is configured to drive the clamping mechanism or one of the welding heads to move. The drive mechanism includes a linked X-axis drive assembly, Y-axis drive assembly, and R-axis drive assembly. Since only three axes are involved in the coordinated movement throughout the welding process, the mechanism design is relatively simple, offers good safety, and enables continuous and precise welding.

[0045] By rationally adjusting the light emission method and employing multi-axis linkage control of the X, Y, and R axes to control the welding trajectory, the problem of incomplete welding of steel-cased batteries in existing technologies can be effectively solved, thereby improving battery quality and safety at the production end. Furthermore, the entire equipment has a simple structure and is easy to operate, which is conducive to improving the production efficiency of steel-cased batteries.

[0046] The welding equipment and its control method provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0047] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a welding device provided in an embodiment of this application. (Refer to...) Figure 1 As shown, this application embodiment provides a welding device 10, which can be used to weld the cover 21 and the housing 22 to assemble the outer shell 20.

[0048] It is understood that the outer casing 20 referred to herein can be the casing of a steel-cased battery, which includes rounded-corner battery casings and right-corner battery casings. Of course, it can also be other structural component casings suitable for this solution, and no specific limitation is made here.

[0049] For ease of understanding, the following description uses the outer casing 20 as the outer casing of a steel-cased battery to illustrate this solution.

[0050] The welding equipment 10 may include a machine base 100, a clamping mechanism 200, a welding head 300, and a drive mechanism 400. The clamping mechanism 200, the welding head 300, and the drive mechanism 400 are all mounted on the machine base 100.

[0051] The machine tool 100 can form the basic support structure for the clamping mechanism 200, the welding head 300 and the drive mechanism 400, and can form a reference positioning platform for the above three.

[0052] The clamping mechanism 200 is configured to clamp the outer shell 20. It should be noted that before the welding assembly of the outer shell 20 is completed, the outer shell 20 is in a state awaiting welding; at this time, the shell 22 and the cover 21 are already assembled and ready for welding. Thus, the clamping mechanism 200 can fix the shell 22 and the cover 21 during the welding process, preventing relative movement and displacement between them.

[0053] The welding head 300 can directly act on the welding area, efficiently transferring the energy (such as electrical energy, light energy, mechanical energy, and heat energy) generated by the welding equipment 10 to the base material, thereby achieving a fixed connection between the housing 22 and the cover 21. In this embodiment, the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head 300 and the surface of the cover 21 is an obtuse angle, and the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head 300 and the surface of the housing 22 is an acute angle.

[0054] Compared to a vertically incident laser beam with energy concentrated at the center of the gap, which may result in incomplete fusion defects due to insufficient melting of the base materials on both sides, an oblique incident laser beam distributes energy elliptically along the gap direction. This allows the base materials on both sides of the gap to absorb more energy simultaneously, ensuring full fusion. Furthermore, oblique welding has a weld width expansion effect; as the angle of inclination increases, the weld width also increases, effectively covering local misalignments between the cover 21 and the shell 22 caused by dimensional deviations.

[0055] In this way, by using the welding head 300 tilted towards the cover 21, a larger weld point coverage can be achieved, resulting in a wider weld coverage area and stronger weld encapsulation. It can also enhance the weld strength, suppress welding defects, and improve the sealing between the casing 22 and the cover 21, thereby improving the problem of incomplete welding of vertically welded steel casing batteries.

[0056] Furthermore, compared to vertical beam emission, which concentrates energy at a single point and causes localized overheating leading to workpiece deformation, burn-through, or molten pool spatter, tilted beam emission disperses energy along the weld direction, reducing heat input per unit area and minimizing the risk of thermal deformation. The tilt angle controls the flow direction of the molten pool, especially when welding thin-walled parts or high thermal conductivity materials (such as aluminum and copper), preventing excessive sinking of the molten pool and improving the smoothness of the weld formation.

[0057] The drive mechanism 400 is configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism 200 and the welding head 300 to move. For example, the drive mechanism 400 can drive the clamping mechanism 200 to move relative to the machine base 100. Correspondingly, the welding head 300 is fixed on the machine base 100. At this time, the clamping mechanism 200 can drive the clamped housing 20 to move together, and the welding head 300 tilts towards the housing cover 21 to achieve welding by moving the clamped housing 20 in the welding state.

[0058] Alternatively, the drive mechanism 400 can also drive the welding head 300 to move, while the clamping mechanism 200 is fixed relative to the machine base 100. In this case, continuous welding between the housing 22 and the cover 21 can be achieved by moving the welding head 300, thus forming a connecting weld.

[0059] The drive mechanism 400 includes a linked X-axis drive assembly 410, a Y-axis drive assembly 420, and an R-axis drive assembly 430.

[0060] Reference Figure 1 As shown, the X-axis drive assembly 410 refers to the axis in the horizontal direction that controls the left and right movement of the welding head 300 or the workpiece to be welded. The Y-axis drive assembly 420 refers to the axis in the horizontal direction, perpendicular to the X-axis, that controls the back and forth movement of the welding head 300 or the workpiece to be welded. By setting up the X-axis drive assembly 410 and the Y-axis drive assembly 420, linear trajectory welding and arc trajectory welding on a plane can be realized.

[0061] The R-axis drive assembly 430 is used to control the rotation of the welding head 300 or the workpiece to be welded. In the welding equipment 10, the R-axis drive assembly 430 can realize the 360° planar rotation of the welding head 300 or the workpiece to be welded, so as to perform circumferential welding of the cover 21 and the housing 22 of the steel-cased battery, ensuring the uniformity and sealing of the welding.

[0062] In the welding equipment 10, the X-axis drive assembly 410, Y-axis drive assembly 420, and R-axis drive assembly 430 work together to achieve precise dynamic alignment between the welding head 300 and the outer casing 20, ensuring that the welding path conforms to the weld requirements. It can also adapt to the differentiated welding needs of different steel-cased batteries, improving welding quality stability and production efficiency.

[0063] It is understood that the X-axis drive assembly 410 may include an X-axis servo motor, a transmission assembly, and a connector for connecting to the welding head 300 or the workpiece to be welded. The Y-axis drive assembly 420 and the R-axis drive assembly 430 may refer to the structural design of the X-axis drive assembly 410, and are not limited thereto.

[0064] By rationally adjusting the light emission method and adopting a 300° tilted welding head, the problem of incomplete welding of steel-cased batteries in existing technologies can be effectively solved, improving battery quality and safety in production. It also enhances welding flexibility and weld quality, improving adaptability to complex workpieces or specific welding scenarios.

[0065] For example, when there are obstructions, deep cavities, or narrow spaces in the outer casing 20, vertical beam emission may not be able to reach the welding position, while tilted beam emission can adjust the angle between the welding head 300 and the casing 21, avoiding obstacles and ensuring that the laser beam can accurately act on the weld. Moreover, when there is a need for non-planar welding (such as curved surface splicing), the tilt angle allows the laser spot to fit more closely with the weld direction, avoiding laser spot deviation caused by vertical irradiation.

[0066] Meanwhile, the welding trajectory is controlled by multi-axis linkage of X-axis, Y-axis and R-axis. The efficient and precise dynamic alignment between the outer shell 20 of the steel-shell battery and the welding head 300 can be completed by only three-axis linkage. The structure is simple and easy to operate, which is conducive to improving the production efficiency of steel-shell batteries.

[0067] The following is a detailed explanation of the solution, taking the movement of the clamping mechanism 200 relative to the machine tool 100 by the drive mechanism 400.

[0068] For example, the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head 300 and the surface of the shell cover 21 ranges from 100° to 150°.

[0069] For example, the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head 300 and the surface of the shell cover 21 can be 100°, 105°, 110°, 115°, 120°, 125°, 130°, 135°, 140°, 145°, 150°, or any combination thereof.

[0070] This ensures uniform penetration, resulting in a smoother laser beam projection on the surface of the cover 21 and preventing excessive energy concentration, thus avoiding burn-through or incomplete welds. Furthermore, the laser beam's interaction direction with the molten pool more closely matches the weld contour, leading to more stable metal flow within the molten pool and reducing the likelihood of spatter caused by energy impact.

[0071] At the same time, because the venting path of the molten pool is smoother, the generation of pores can be reduced, thereby reducing the impact on the battery's sealing performance.

[0072] In one implementation, the X-axis drive assembly 410 is mounted on the machine tool 100, the Y-axis drive assembly 420 is mounted on the X-axis drive assembly 410, and the R-axis drive assembly 430 is mounted on the Y-axis drive assembly 420. Thus, the X-axis drive assembly 410, the Y-axis drive assembly 420, and the R-axis drive assembly 430 can be connected.

[0073] The aforementioned stacked installation structure enables a three-axis linkage design in a Cartesian coordinate system, allowing for precise three-dimensional positioning of the welding head 300 within a compact space, maximizing space utilization. It also simplifies the transmission chain, improves motion accuracy, and enhances equipment compatibility.

[0074] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the composition of a welding apparatus provided in an embodiment of this application. (Refer to...) Figure 2 As shown, the welding equipment 10 may also include a touch screen 500 and a controller 600.

[0075] The touchscreen 500 can be programmed with welding trajectories. This allows for direct position teaching via the touchscreen 500 without the need for third-party equipment to obtain the welding trajectory, simplifying the process and reducing operational difficulty. Furthermore, it translates human experience into precise, executable instructions for the equipment.

[0076] Teaching the welding trajectory on the touch screen 500 refers to defining or guiding the movement path of the welding equipment 10 directly on the screen interface through touch operation, thereby achieving intuitive programming or path planning.

[0077] The controller 600 is electrically connected to the touch screen 500 and the drive mechanism 400, and the controller 600 can be configured to read the welding trajectory and control the movement of the drive mechanism 400 according to the welding trajectory.

[0078] With this configuration, the controller 600 can directly read the welding trajectory recorded on the touch screen 500 and control the clamping mechanism 200 to move accordingly, thereby driving the workpiece to be welded to move according to the preset trajectory information and completing the welding trajectory control of the shell 20.

[0079] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating a control method for a welding equipment provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0080] Reference Figure 3 As shown, this application also provides a control method for a welding device 10. The welding device 10 can be used to weld and assemble a cover 21 and a housing 22 into a housing 20. Furthermore, the welding device 10 includes a machine base 100 and a clamping mechanism 200, a welding head 300, and a drive mechanism 400 mounted on the machine base 100.

[0081] The control method for the welding equipment 10 may include:

[0082] S100. Set the welding trajectory. The trajectory types for welding are linear trajectory and circular trajectory.

[0083] The welding trajectory refers to the movement path of the welding head 300 relative to the junction of the housing 22 and the cover 21. Thus, the welding head 300 can achieve a stable connection between the housing 22 and the cover 21 according to the welding trajectory. It should be noted that the arc trajectory can include planar arc trajectories and non-planar arc trajectories; no specific limitation is made here. In some embodiments, the trajectory type may also include spiral trajectories, serpentine trajectories, etc.

[0084] For example, welding trajectories can be set through various methods such as manual teaching, offline programming, and visual guidance. Manual teaching is the most intuitive and convenient, allowing users to move point by point to the start and end points of the weld seam using a teaching pendant (such as a touchscreen), with the device automatically recording the 3D coordinates and attitude parameters. Offline programming is suitable for complex spatial weld seams; by importing a 3D model of the workpiece using simulation software, the trajectory can be automatically generated. Visual guidance uses visual sensors (such as 3D cameras) to acquire weld seam information in real time and dynamically correct the trajectory.

[0085] S200: Determine the trajectory type of the current trajectory, and determine the control program to be executed based on the trajectory type.

[0086] For example, if the current trajectory is a straight line, then the control program corresponding to the straight line trajectory will be executed.

[0087] When the current trajectory is a circular arc, the control program corresponding to that trajectory is executed. This ensures that the corresponding control program is correctly executed based on the welding trajectory, preventing errors during the welding process.

[0088] S300: Based on the current trajectory position information and control program, control the movement of the drive mechanism.

[0089] Combination Figure 1 As shown, the drive mechanism 400 is mounted on the machine base 100, and the drive mechanism 400 is configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism 200 and the welding head 300 to move. For example, the drive mechanism 400 can drive the clamping mechanism 200 to move relative to the machine base 100, and the drive mechanism 400 can also drive the welding head 300 to move relative to the machine base 100, without limitation.

[0090] Furthermore, the drive mechanism 400 may include a linked X-axis drive assembly 410, a Y-axis drive assembly 420, and an R-axis drive assembly 430. This enables precise dynamic alignment between the welding head 300 and the outer casing 20, ensuring that the welding path conforms to the weld requirements. It can also adapt to the differentiated welding needs of different steel-cased batteries, improving welding quality stability and production efficiency.

[0091] S400: The drive mechanism drives the clamping mechanism or welding head to move, completing the welding of the current trajectory.

[0092] When the drive mechanism 400 drives the clamping mechanism 200 or the welding head 300 to move, since the clamping mechanism 200 is configured to clamp the outer shell 20, when the drive mechanism 400 drives the clamping mechanism 200 to move, it can drive the outer shell 20 to move together, and through the movement of the clamped workpiece to be welded, the welding head 300 is tilted to the shell cover 21 to produce welding light, and the welding of the current trajectory is completed.

[0093] When the drive mechanism 400 drives the welding head 300 to move, the welding head 300 can be tilted towards the cover 21 to produce welding light and complete the welding of the current trajectory.

[0094] The above control method can realize the function of controlling the welding trajectory of the battery shell 20, which is composed of arcs and straight lines, during the welding of steel-shell batteries.

[0095] The following example, which uses the drive mechanism 400 to drive the clamping mechanism 200 to move and complete the welding of the current trajectory, will be used for further explanation.

[0096] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating another control method for welding equipment provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0097] Combination Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, step S200, determining the trajectory type of the current trajectory and determining the control program to be executed based on the trajectory type, may include:

[0098] When the current trajectory type is a straight line trajectory, the straight line trajectory control program is executed.

[0099] It is understandable that when the current trajectory type is a straight trajectory, since the trajectories are all on the same plane, there is no need to call the R-axis drive component 430. It is only necessary to start the X-axis drive component 410 and Y-axis drive component 420 in the drive mechanism 400 to achieve the corresponding welding connection.

[0100] When the current trajectory type is a circular arc trajectory, the circular arc trajectory control program is executed.

[0101] The circular arc trajectory control program can include both planar circular arc trajectory control programs and non-planar circular arc trajectory control programs. This allows it to be adapted to welding requirements of different battery shapes, expanding the application scenarios of the welding equipment 10.

[0102] It should be noted that steps S210 and S220 are optional and will not occur simultaneously or in any particular order. When the current trajectory is neither a circular arc nor a straight line, it means that the outer shell 20 has been welded.

[0103] As one implementation method, when the current trajectory is a straight trajectory, straight trajectory interpolation is performed based on the position information of the current trajectory to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

[0104] In this way, the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420 can be driven to move according to the obtained movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component 410 and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component 420, so as to realize the welding of the straight trajectory.

[0105] In some embodiments, before performing linear interpolation, a two-axis group can be established using the X-axis drive assembly 410 and the Y-axis drive assembly 420, and the axis group can be enabled. When the welding operation of the linear trajectory is completed, the axis group is deenabled, and the instruction line number is incremented by 1.

[0106] It should be noted that the current trajectory's position information can include the position information of the starting point and the ending point of the straight line trajectory. Alternatively, the current trajectory's position information can also include the position information of the starting point, the ending point, and the position information of the midpoints within the straight line trajectory.

[0107] Interpolation refers to the process by which a CNC machine tool system determines the tool's motion trajectory using a specific method. It can also be described as a method of calculating the intermediate points between known points on a curve using a certain algorithm; this is also known as "data point densification." Trajectory interpolation can densify the space between the start and end points of a trajectory, thereby forming the desired contour trajectory. Correspondingly, linear trajectory interpolation can densify the points between the start and end points of a straight line trajectory, forming a defined straight line trajectory.

[0108] As another implementation method, when the trajectory type of the current trajectory is a circular arc trajectory, it is determined whether the circular arc trajectory is a planar circular arc trajectory based on the position information of the current trajectory.

[0109] When the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, the X-axis drive component, Y-axis drive component and R-axis drive component in the drive mechanism are activated.

[0110] When the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, activate the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component.

[0111] Understandably, when the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, there are height differences between points on the non-planar arc trajectory, and they are not on the same plane. In this case, it is necessary to drive the rotation of component 430 through the R-axis to meet the requirements of the welding trajectory.

[0112] When the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, all points on the planar arc trajectory are still located on the same plane. Therefore, it is only necessary to start the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420.

[0113] For example, when the current trajectory is an arc trajectory, the coordinate positions of the X-axis drive component 410, Y-axis drive component 420, and R-axis drive component 430 corresponding to the starting point, midpoint, and ending point of the current arc trajectory can be obtained. In some embodiments, the arc trajectory can be set via the touch screen 500.

[0114] Therefore, based on the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430, it can be determined whether the current arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory.

[0115] For example, if the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the end of the arc is not equal to the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the beginning of the arc, and the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the end of the arc is greater than the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the beginning of the arc, then the arc is not a planar arc.

[0116] If the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the end of the arc is equal to the coordinate position of the R-axis drive component 430 at the beginning of the arc, then the arc is a planar arc.

[0117] It is understandable that when the circular arc is the next segment of the straight line, the end point of the straight line segment becomes the starting point of the circular arc. When the next segment of the circular arc is a straight line, the starting point of the next straight line segment becomes the ending point of the circular arc, and so on.

[0118] For example, when the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, before activating the X-axis drive component, Y-axis drive component, and R-axis drive component in the drive mechanism, the following may also be included:

[0119] According to the formula Calculate the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

[0120] in, The coordinate position of the R-axis drive component. This refers to the coordinate position of the X-axis drive component or the Y-axis drive component. , , All are coefficients.

[0121] The movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component are coupled with the movement trajectory of the R-axis drive component, respectively. Circular trajectory interpolation is performed based on the current trajectory position information to obtain the movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component.

[0122] For example, with the R-axis drive assembly 430 as the master axis, the X-axis drive assembly 410 and Y-axis drive assembly 420 as slave axes are electronically coupled to the R-axis drive assembly 430, and trajectory control is executed based on the data calculated by the cam table. A cam table is a motion control device commonly used in mechanical systems; through its designed motion planning and control algorithms, precise motion trajectory control can be achieved.

[0123] Simultaneously, the R-axis drive assembly 430 positions itself according to the specified movement distance from its current position and performs circular interpolation to complete the welding action on the circular arc trajectory. After the non-planar circular arc welding action is completed, the electronic camshaft is decoupled, and the command line number is incremented by 1.

[0124] Taking the calculation of the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component 410 as an example. Let the coordinates of the R-axis drive component 430 and the X-axis drive component 410 of the starting point, midpoint, and ending point of this non-planar circular arc trajectory be... .

[0125] Known This indicates the position information of the R-axis drive component 430 at these three points. Specifically, it represents the rotation angle values ​​at the three points. (Starting point...) The value is generally defined as 0°. If the rotation angle of the starting point is set to 0°, then for a 90° arc, the rotation angles of the starting point, the middle point, and the ending point are 0°, 45°, and 90°, respectively.

[0126] and This indicates the position information of the X-axis drive component 410 at three points.

[0127] Substituting the above coordinates into the formula In this way, the coefficients A, B, and C can be solved. The value of can then be used to solve for the mathematical relationship between the position of the R-axis drive assembly 430 and the position of the X-axis drive assembly 410.

[0128] The specific calculation steps are as follows:

[0129] ① can The corresponding rotation angle value is converted into radians.

[0130] ② Converted Substitution In this context, let the intermediate variable be T. Simplifying, we get:

[0131]

[0132] ③ By organizing the above data, we can obtain:

[0133] ,but .

[0134] ④ Coefficient ,coefficient .

[0135] ⑤ Based on the above steps, the position information of the X-axis drive component 410 under different rotation angles can be obtained, and the motion trajectory of the X-axis drive component 410 can be obtained.

[0136] Similarly, the trajectory calculation of the Y-axis drive component 420 can also refer to the trajectory calculation of the X-axis drive component 410 mentioned above, and will not be elaborated here.

[0137] It should be noted that after calculating the motion trajectories of the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420 based on the above calculation formula and data, corresponding cam tables are established for the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420 respectively, and then the phase and distance can be calculated using the cam tables.

[0138] It is understandable that the existing steel-cased battery welding methods are basically vertical welding, and the main reason for not using inclined welding is that the trajectory control of inclined welding is more difficult.

[0139] If the center of the rotation axis coincides with the center of the battery's outer shape, the motion relationship between the rotation axis and the X and Y axes can be derived in a forward direction. However, due to assembly errors during the manufacturing process and the shape errors of the housing 22 and the cover 21, it is often difficult to coincide the center of the battery's outer shape with the center of the rotation axis, and it is also difficult to measure. Therefore, this method is not feasible.

[0140] Therefore, the control method provided in this application adopts reverse derivation. Point teaching is performed based on the shape of the battery. For example, the starting point, middle point and ending point are taught for an arc. Then, the points are substituted into the above formula to calculate the parameters of the formula in reverse, so as to obtain the motion relationship between the three axes and realize trajectory control.

[0141] In some embodiments, when the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, before activating the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component, the following is further included:

[0142] Determine the direction of the circular arc trajectory based on the current position information.

[0143] It is understandable that the direction of the arc trajectory here includes both clockwise and counterclockwise extension. For example, vectors can be calculated based on the starting, intermediate, and ending points of the arc trajectory, and the vector product between the two vectors can be solved to determine the extension direction of the planar arc.

[0144] Perform circular trajectory interpolation to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

[0145] For example, based on the current position information of the trajectory, the direction of the arc trajectory is determined as follows:

[0146] Assume the coordinates of the starting point, midpoint, and ending point on the circular arc trajectory are as follows:

[0147] .

[0148] The vector can be obtained by finding the point location. ,vector Then use vectors with vector The formula for solving the vector product is as follows:

[0149] .

[0150] When the value of the vector product is positive, The path moves counter-clockwise. When it is negative, The path runs clockwise. When it is zero, The direction of travel remains unchanged, meaning the starting point, intermediate point, and ending point are on the same straight line.

[0151] It is understandable that in a planar circular arc, the position information of the R-axis drive component 430 remains unchanged, that is, the rotation angle remains unchanged. At this time, it is only necessary to control the movement of the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420.

[0152] The movement directions of the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420 can be determined by calculating the above vector product, thereby avoiding reverse welding.

[0153] The planar circular interpolation mode can be selected through the point specification mode, and the position coordinates of the X-axis drive component 410 and Y-axis drive component 420 of the arc passing through the point and ending point can be obtained according to the point information taught by the touch screen 500.

[0154] Since the position information in the R direction does not change during the movement of the planar arc, when performing the interpolation action, it is only necessary to specify the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420. Therefore, the two-axis group can be established and enabled by the X-axis drive component 410 and the Y-axis drive component 420.

[0155] Based on this, according to the obtained direction of the planar arc, the coordinates of the passing point and the ending point, the mechanism that performs the interpolation action and the corresponding axis group, the 2D planar arc interpolation function can be executed using this information to achieve control of the planar arc trajectory.

[0156] When the planar circular arc trajectory welding action is completed, the shaft group disconnection is enabled, and the command line number is incremented by 1.

[0157] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

[0158] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A welding apparatus for use in welding assembly of a shell cover with a shell body into an enclosure, characterised in that, The welding equipment includes: Machine tool; A clamping mechanism is mounted on the machine base and configured to clamp the housing; The welding head is mounted on the machine base, and the angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the shell cover is an obtuse angle, and the angle between the welding head and the surface of the shell cover is an acute angle; A drive mechanism is mounted on the machine base and configured to drive one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move; the drive mechanism includes a linked X-axis drive assembly, a Y-axis drive assembly and an R-axis drive assembly.

2. The welding equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The angle between the light emission direction of the welding head and the surface of the shell cover ranges from 100° to 150°.

3. The welding equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The X-axis drive assembly is mounted on the machine base, the Y-axis drive assembly is mounted on the X-axis drive assembly, and the R-axis drive assembly is mounted on the Y-axis drive assembly.

4. The welding equipment according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, Also includes: A touchscreen, wherein welding trajectories are set on the touchscreen; A controller, electrically connected to the touchscreen and the drive mechanism, is configured to read the welding trajectory and control the movement of the drive mechanism according to the welding trajectory.

5. A control method for welding equipment, characterized in that, include: The welding trajectory is set, and the trajectory type of the welding trajectory includes a straight line trajectory and a circular arc trajectory; Determine the trajectory type of the current trajectory, and determine the control program to be executed based on the trajectory type; Based on the current trajectory position information and the control program, the drive mechanism is controlled to move; The drive mechanism drives one of the clamping mechanism and the welding head to move, completing the welding of the current trajectory.

6. The control method for welding equipment according to claim 5, characterized in that, Determine the trajectory type of the current trajectory, and determine the control program to be executed based on the trajectory type, including: When the trajectory type of the current trajectory is a straight line trajectory, the straight line trajectory control program is executed; When the trajectory type of the current trajectory is the circular arc trajectory, the circular arc trajectory control program is executed.

7. The control method for welding equipment according to claim 6, characterized in that, When the trajectory type of the current trajectory is a straight trajectory, straight trajectory interpolation is performed based on the position information of the current trajectory to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

8. The control method for welding equipment according to claim 6, characterized in that, When the trajectory type of the current trajectory is the circular arc trajectory, it is determined whether the circular arc trajectory is a planar circular arc trajectory based on the position information of the current trajectory; wherein, When the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, the X-axis drive component, Y-axis drive component and R-axis drive component in the drive mechanism are activated; When the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component are activated.

9. The control method for welding equipment according to claim 8, characterized in that, When the arc trajectory is a non-planar arc trajectory, before activating the X-axis drive assembly, Y-axis drive assembly, and R-axis drive assembly in the drive mechanism, the following is also included: According to the formula Calculate the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component; wherein, The coordinate position of the R-axis drive component. The coordinate position of the X-axis drive component or the Y-axis drive component. , , All are coefficients; The movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component are coupled with the movement trajectory of the R-axis drive component, respectively. Circular trajectory interpolation is performed based on the position information of the current trajectory to obtain the movement trajectories of the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component.

10. The control method for welding equipment according to claim 8, characterized in that, When the arc trajectory is a planar arc trajectory, before activating the X-axis drive component and the Y-axis drive component, the following steps are also included: Based on the current trajectory's position information, determine the direction of the circular arc trajectory; Perform circular trajectory interpolation to obtain the movement trajectory of the X-axis drive component and the movement trajectory of the Y-axis drive component.

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