Battery cell positioning equipment and battery assembly system
By integrating the cell positioning equipment with the cell width and thickness alignment device, the problem of inaccurate positioning of blade cell stacking is solved, high-precision cell positioning is achieved and production costs are reduced.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202522016764.6
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-09-19
- Publication Date
- 2025-10-28
- Estimated Expiration
- 2035-09-19
AI Technical Summary
Existing technologies cannot effectively eliminate the thickness tolerance in the manufacturing process of blade batteries, resulting in inaccurate positioning of battery module stacking, frequently causing equipment jamming, misalignment and other abnormalities, and the production process requires multi-station step-by-step operations, increasing space and equipment costs.
The integrated cell width centering device and cell thickness centering device are used to achieve simultaneous centering of the cell in width and thickness directions by flipping and lifting components, reducing the need for workstations and the cross-station transportation process.
It significantly improves the accuracy of battery cell positioning, meets the position consistency requirements of battery cell module stacking, and reduces production costs and equipment investment.
Smart Images
Figure CN223487087U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to the field of battery manufacturing equipment, and more particularly to a cell positioning device and a battery assembly system. Background Technology
[0002] Blade cells, with their high energy density, thin and light structure, and high space utilization, have become one of the mainstream choices for power battery modules. The stacking precision of blade cells is directly related to the charging and discharging performance, cycle life, and safety of power batteries.
[0003] Current positioning solutions for blade battery cells before stacking cannot completely eliminate thickness tolerances (approximately ±0.5mm) that occur during cell manufacturing. These tolerances accumulate and are passed on to subsequent stacking stations, leading to inaccurate cell module stacking positioning and frequent equipment jamming and misalignment. This fails to meet the high requirements for cell position consistency during the stacking process. Furthermore, existing solutions rely on multi-station, step-by-step operations, requiring repeated handling of cells between multiple stations. This not only occupies a significant amount of workstation space but also necessitates the configuration of multiple sets of handling drive equipment, significantly increasing production space and equipment investment costs.
[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to provide an improved cell positioning device and battery assembly system to solve the above problems. Utility Model Content
[0005] This application provides a cell positioning device and a battery assembly system to reduce the impact of cell errors on stacking accuracy and reduce the number of workstations required during the assembly process.
[0006] This application discloses a battery cell positioning device, including a bracket, a battery cell width alignment device, a flipping device, and a battery cell thickness alignment device. The flipping device and the battery cell thickness alignment device are both assembled on the bracket. The flipping device is connected to the battery cell width alignment device and is used to drive the battery cell width alignment device to rotate. The battery cell thickness alignment device includes a first driving member and a pair of clamping arms arranged opposite to each other. The first driving member is used to drive the pair of clamping arms to move closer or further away from each other synchronously.
[0007] Furthermore, the first drive member is provided with a slide rail extending in the front-rear direction on the side near the clamping arm, and the cell thickness alignment device further includes a pair of sliders that are engaged in the slide rail and slide along the slide rail, and the pair of sliders are respectively connected to the pair of clamping arms.
[0008] Furthermore, the clamping arm includes a first clamping part arranged in the left-right direction and a second clamping part arranged in the up-down direction, wherein the upper end of the second clamping part is connected to the end of the first clamping part away from the first driving member.
[0009] Furthermore, the bottom of the second clamping portion of each of the pair of clamping arms is bent toward the side closer to each other to form a flange.
[0010] Furthermore, the cell width alignment device includes a second driving member and at least one pair of grippers, wherein the second driving member is used to drive the pair of grippers to move closer or further apart synchronously.
[0011] Furthermore, the flipping device includes a third driving member, a transmission mechanism, and a flipping plate. The transmission mechanism connects the third driving member and the flipping plate respectively. The third driving member is used to drive the flipping plate to rotate through the transmission mechanism. The flipping plate is fixed to the cell width alignment device.
[0012] Furthermore, the transmission mechanism includes a connecting rod, an adapter, and a rotating shaft connected in sequence. The connecting rod is connected to the third driving member. The two ends of the adapter are respectively connected to the connecting rod and the rotating shaft. The rotating shaft is connected to the flip plate and extends in the left-right direction.
[0013] Furthermore, the cell positioning device also includes a lifting assembly assembled on the bracket, the lifting assembly being used to drive the cell width centering device and the flipping device to rise and fall; the lifting assembly includes a connecting plate assembled on the bracket and a fourth driving component fixed to the connecting plate, and the flipping device is connected to the connecting plate.
[0014] Furthermore, the number of the cell thickness alignment devices is at least one pair, and the pair of cell thickness alignment devices are symmetrically assembled on the left and right sides of the bracket and disposed near the upper part of the bracket.
[0015] This application also discloses a battery assembly system, including the battery assembly system described above.
[0016] The battery cell positioning equipment and battery assembly system of this application integrate a battery cell width alignment device and a battery cell thickness alignment device, which can simultaneously achieve alignment and positioning from the width and thickness directions of the battery cell. This effectively reduces the impact of the dimensional tolerances of the battery cell itself on the stacking tolerances, significantly improves the accuracy of battery cell positioning, and meets the positional consistency requirements of battery cell module stacking. At the same time, it realizes the integrated operation of battery cell flipping, width alignment, and thickness alignment, eliminating the need for multi-station step-by-step positioning and cross-station handling processes, reducing the station requirements in the battery cell assembly process and lowering costs.
[0017] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and do not limit this application. Attached Figure Description
[0018] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this application.
[0019] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the battery cell positioning device of this application.
[0020] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A partial enlarged view of the battery cell positioning equipment.
[0021] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A three-dimensional view of the cell width alignment device and flipping plate in the cell positioning equipment.
[0022] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A 3D view of some parts of the cell positioning equipment.
[0023] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A stereoscopic view from another perspective.
[0024] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 A partially enlarged view of the connection between the cell thickness alignment device and the support frame in the cell positioning equipment.
[0025] Figure 7 This is a perspective view of the cell thickness alignment device of this application.
[0026] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:
[0027] 10. Bracket; 11. Slide rail; 20. Cell width alignment device; 21. Second drive component; 22. Gripper; 23. Guide rail; 30. Flipping device; 31. Third drive component; 32. Transmission mechanism; 321. Connecting rod; 322. Adapter; 323. Rotating shaft; 33. Flipping plate; 40. Cell thickness alignment device; 41. First drive component; 411. Slide rail; 42. Clamping arm; 421. First clamping part; 422. Second clamping part; 4221. Flanged edge; 43. Slider; 50. Lifting assembly; 51. Connecting plate; 52. Fourth drive component; 60. Cell. Detailed Implementation
[0028] The technical solutions in the embodiments (or "implementations") of this application will be clearly and completely described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings. When the following description relates to the drawings, unless otherwise indicated, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements.
[0029] If the embodiments of this application contain terms relating to directional indications or positional relationships (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, inside, outside, top, bottom, center, vertical, horizontal, longitudinal, transverse, length, width, counterclockwise, clockwise, axial, radial, circumferential, etc.), such terms are only used to explain the relative positional relationships and movement of the components in a specific posture (as shown in the attached figures); if the specific posture changes, the directional indications or positional relationships will also change accordingly. Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" used in the embodiments of this application are only for descriptive convenience and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.
[0030] The embodiments of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the features of the following embodiments and implementation methods can complement or combine with each other. In this embodiment, the front-back direction, left-right direction, and up-down direction are all... Figure 1 The direction indicated by the middle arrow is for reference.
[0031] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, this application provides a cell positioning device for positioning blade cells 60 before stacking. The cell positioning device includes a support 10, a cell width alignment device 20, a flipping device 30, and a cell thickness alignment device 40.
[0032] The flipping device 30 and the cell thickness alignment device 40 are both assembled on the bracket 10. The flipping device 30 is assembled on the upper part of the bracket 10. The flipping device 30 is connected to the cell width alignment device 20 and is used to drive the cell width alignment device 20 to rotate. Both the flipping device 30 and the cell width alignment device 20 can be raised and lowered relative to the cell thickness alignment device 40.
[0033] Please refer to the following at the same time Figure 3 The cell width alignment device 20 is used to center and clamp the cell 60 in the width direction, thereby achieving the positioning of the cell 60 in the width direction. The cell width alignment device 20 includes a second driving member 21, at least one pair of grippers 22, and a guide rail 23.
[0034] The second driving component 21 is used to drive a pair of grippers 22 to move closer or further apart synchronously. In this embodiment, the second driving component 21 is a standard centering and clamping cylinder. The grippers 22 clamp the battery cell 60 from both sides in the width direction of the battery cell 60, with the center point of the centering and clamping cylinder as the origin. In some cases, the second driving component 21 can also be set as a non-standard centering mechanism, such as a scissor clamping mechanism, which uses the central axis of the scissor clamping mechanism as a reference to achieve centering and clamping.
[0035] By setting up a cell width alignment device 20, the grippers 22 on both sides simultaneously position and clamp the two sides of the cell 60 in the width direction, avoiding the problem of tolerance accumulation in single-sided positioning and effectively improving positioning accuracy.
[0036] The guide rail 23 is fixed to the side of the second drive member 21 near the battery cell 60 and extends along the width direction of the battery cell 60. A pair of grippers 22 move synchronously towards or away from each other along the guide rail 23 under the drive of the second drive member 21. Before the battery cell width alignment device 20 grips the battery cell 60, the battery cell 60 is placed horizontally and below the battery cell width alignment device 20, with the grippers 22 located below the second drive member 21. When the battery cell width alignment device 20 clamps the battery cell 60 in a centered position, each pair of grippers 22 approaches synchronously from both the front and rear sides of the battery cell 60 until the battery cell 60 is clamped.
[0037] In some cases, the cell width alignment device 20 also includes a cell detection sensor and a clamping detection sensor. The cell detection sensor is used to detect whether there is a cell under the gripper 22. Only when the cell detection sensor detects the presence of a cell will the gripper 22 be controlled to complete the gripping action. The clamping detection sensor is used to detect whether the gripper 22 is holding a cell.
[0038] Please refer to the following at the same time Figure 4 and Figure 5 The flipping device 30 is used to drive the cell width alignment device 20 and the cell 60 to rotate. The flipping device 30 includes a third driving member 31, a transmission mechanism 32, and a flipping plate 33. The transmission mechanism 32 connects the third driving member 31 and the flipping plate 33. The third driving member 31 drives the flipping plate 33 to rotate through the transmission mechanism 32. The flipping plate 33 is fixed to the cell width alignment device 20, thereby driving the cell width alignment device 20 and the cell 60 to rotate.
[0039] The transmission mechanism 32 includes a connecting rod 321, a transition piece 322, and a rotating shaft 323 connected in sequence. The third driving member 31 can be configured as a rotary cylinder, lever, motor, etc. In this embodiment, the third driving member 31 is a cylinder, including a fixed end and a telescopic end, the telescopic end being movable relative to the fixed end. The connecting rod 321 is connected to the telescopic end of the third driving member 31, and the telescopic end can drive the connecting rod 321 to move in the forward and backward direction. The two ends of the transition piece 322 are respectively connected to the connecting rod 321 and the rotating shaft 323. When the connecting rod 321 moves forward and backward, the transition piece 322 swings around the rotating shaft 323 as the center, thereby realizing the rotation of the rotating shaft 323.
[0040] The rotating shaft 323 is connected to the flipping plate 33, thereby driving the flipping plate 33, the cell width alignment device 20, and the cell 60 to rotate about the axis of the rotating shaft 323. The rotating shaft 323 extends in the left-right direction. In this way, the flipping plate 33, the cell width alignment device 20, and the cell 60 can be flipped from horizontal to vertical.
[0041] like Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, the cell thickness alignment device 40 is used to center and clamp the cell 60 in the thickness direction, thereby achieving the positioning of the cell 60 in the thickness direction. The cell thickness alignment device 40 includes a first driving member 41 and a pair of clamping arms 42 arranged opposite to each other. The first driving member 41 is used to drive the pair of clamping arms 42 to move closer or further apart synchronously.
[0042] In this embodiment, the first driving component 41 is a centering clamping cylinder. The clamping arm 42 clamps the battery cell 60 from both sides in the thickness direction of the battery cell 60, based on the central axis of the centering clamping cylinder. In some cases, the second driving component 21 can also be configured as a non-standard centering mechanism, such as a scissor clamping mechanism, which uses the central axis of the scissor clamping mechanism as a reference to achieve centering and clamping.
[0043] The first drive member 41 is provided with a slide rail 411 extending in the front-back direction on the side near the clamping arm 42. The cell thickness alignment device 40 also includes a pair of sliders 43 that are locked in the slide rail 411 and slide along the slide rail 411. The pair of sliders 43 are respectively connected to a pair of clamping arms 42 to drive the clamping arms 42 to move.
[0044] A pair of clamping arms clamp the battery cell 60 from both the front and rear sides. Specifically, in this embodiment, the clamping arm 42 includes a first clamping part 421 arranged in the left-right direction and a second clamping part 422 arranged in the up-down direction. The first clamping part 421 is fixed to the slider 43. The upper end of the second clamping part 422 is connected to the end of the first clamping part 421 away from the first driving member 41. The first clamping part 421 and the second clamping part 422 are arranged in the left-right and up-down directions, respectively, which expands the clamping coverage of the battery cell 60, enhances the constraint ability of the battery cell 60, and effectively improves the reliability of the positioning of the battery cell 60.
[0045] Furthermore, the bottom of each pair of second clamping parts 422 is bent toward the side closer to each other to form a flange 4221, which supports the battery cell 60 from the bottom, preventing the battery cell 60 from falling off due to gravity or external force during clamping and positioning, and further improving the stability of the battery cell 60 positioning.
[0046] The number of cell thickness alignment devices 40 is at least one pair. The pair of cell thickness alignment devices 40 are symmetrically assembled on the left and right sides of the bracket 10 and are positioned close to the upper part of the bracket 10. The pair of cell thickness alignment devices 40 clamp and position the same cell 60 from the left and right sides respectively, so as to make the positioning of the cell 60 in the thickness direction more accurate and the clamping more stable and reliable.
[0047] By setting up a cell thickness alignment device 40, the clamping arms 42 on both sides simultaneously position and clamp the two sides of the cell 60 in the thickness direction, avoiding the tolerance accumulation problem of single-sided positioning and effectively improving the positioning accuracy.
[0048] Understandably, the cell width alignment device 20 is located at the lower part of the support 10 when gripping and clamping the cell 60. After the flipping device 30 flips the cell 60 from a horizontal to a vertical position, the cell 60 still needs to rise to the cell thickness alignment device 40 to achieve alignment and clamping in the thickness direction. Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the cell positioning device also includes a lifting assembly 50 assembled on the bracket 10. The lifting assembly 50 is used to drive the cell width alignment device 20, the flipping device 30, and the cell 60 to rise and fall.
[0049] The lifting assembly 50 includes a connecting plate 51 and a fourth driving component 52. The connecting plate 51 is assembled to the bracket 10 and can slide up and down along the vertical slide rail 11 on the bracket 10. The fourth driving component 52 is a structure such as a cylinder, servo electric cylinder, or lead screw motor. The fourth driving component 52 is fixed to the connecting plate 51 to drive the connecting plate 51 to rise or fall, thereby driving the cell width alignment device 20, the flipping device 30, and the cell 60 to rise or fall.
[0050] The following describes the workflow of the battery cell positioning device of this application. First, the battery cell width alignment device 20 is in a horizontal position, clamping the battery cell 60, which is also placed horizontally below it, thus positioning and fixing the battery cell 60 in the width direction. Then, the flipping device 30 rotates the battery cell width alignment device 20 and the battery cell 60 to a vertical position. The lifting assembly 50 then raises the flipping device 30, the battery cell width alignment device 20, and the battery cell 60 to the height of the battery cell thickness alignment device 40. The battery cell thickness alignment device 40 clamps the battery cell 60 from both its front and rear sides, thus positioning and fixing the battery cell 60 in the thickness direction.
[0051] Figure 1 The illustrated embodiment includes two sets of battery cell positioning devices arranged side-by-side. In this embodiment, each set of battery cell positioning devices includes four battery cell width alignment devices 20 and four pairs of battery cell thickness alignment devices 40. The four battery cell width alignment devices are arranged side-by-side in the front-back direction, and the four pairs of battery cell thickness alignment devices 40 are also arranged side-by-side in the front-back direction. In this way, multiple battery cells 60 can be positioned simultaneously, shortening the process time.
[0052] This application also provides a battery assembly system, including the cell positioning device described above.
[0053] The cell positioning equipment and battery assembly system of this application integrate a cell width alignment device 20 and a cell thickness alignment device 40, which can simultaneously achieve alignment and positioning from the width and thickness directions of the cell 60. This effectively reduces the impact of the dimensional tolerances of the cell 60 itself on the stacking tolerances, significantly improves the accuracy of cell positioning, and meets the positional consistency requirements of cell module stacking. At the same time, it achieves integrated operation of cell 60 flipping, width alignment, and thickness alignment, eliminating the need for multi-station step-by-step positioning and cross-station handling processes, reducing the station requirements in the cell assembly process and lowering costs.
[0054] It should be noted that the technical solutions or features described in the above embodiments can be combined or supplemented with each other without conflict. The scope of protection of this application is not limited to the precise structures described in the above embodiments and shown in the accompanying drawings; all modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application.
Claims
1. A battery cell positioning device, characterized in that, The device includes a support, a cell width alignment device, a flipping device, and a cell thickness alignment device. The flipping device and the cell thickness alignment device are both assembled on the support. The flipping device is connected to the cell width alignment device and is used to drive the cell width alignment device to rotate. The cell thickness alignment device includes a first driving member and a pair of clamping arms arranged opposite each other. The first driving member is used to drive the pair of clamping arms to move closer or further apart from each other synchronously.
2. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first drive member has a slide rail extending in the front-rear direction on the side near the clamping arm. The cell thickness alignment device also includes a pair of sliders that are engaged in the slide rail and slide along the slide rail. The pair of sliders are respectively connected to the pair of clamping arms.
3. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The clamping arm includes a first clamping part arranged in the left-right direction and a second clamping part arranged in the up-down direction. The upper end of the second clamping part is connected to the end of the first clamping part away from the first driving member.
4. The cell positioning device according to claim 3, characterized in that, The bottom of the second clamping part of each pair of clamping arms is bent toward the side closer to each other to form a flange.
5. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cell width alignment device includes a second driving member and at least one pair of grippers, wherein the second driving member is used to drive the pair of grippers to move closer or further apart synchronously.
6. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The flipping device includes a third driving component, a transmission mechanism, and a flipping plate. The transmission mechanism connects the third driving component and the flipping plate respectively. The third driving component is used to drive the flipping plate to rotate through the transmission mechanism. The flipping plate is fixed to the cell width alignment device.
7. The cell positioning device according to claim 6, characterized in that, The transmission mechanism includes a connecting rod, an adapter, and a rotating shaft connected in sequence. The connecting rod is connected to the third driving component. The two ends of the adapter are respectively connected to the connecting rod and the rotating shaft. The rotating shaft is connected to the flip plate and extends in the left-right direction.
8. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cell positioning device further includes a lifting assembly assembled on the bracket. The lifting assembly is used to drive the cell width centering device and the flipping device to rise and fall. The lifting assembly includes a connecting plate assembled on the bracket and a fourth driving component fixed to the connecting plate. The flipping device is connected to the connecting plate.
9. The cell positioning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of the cell thickness alignment devices is at least one pair, and the pair of cell thickness alignment devices are symmetrically assembled on the left and right sides of the bracket and disposed near the upper part of the bracket.
10. A battery assembly system, characterized in that, Includes the cell positioning device as described in any one of claims 1-9.