A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids

Abstract

A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids includes a top support frame, a hopper body, a toothed rotary support bearing, and a rotary drive device for synchronously rotating the hopper body and the toothed rotary support bearing. The upper part of the hopper body is mounted within the top support frame, and the top of the top support frame has a clearance groove for accommodating the hopper body's feed inlet. The toothed rotary support bearing is fitted onto the hopper body and is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the hopper body via an outer ring locking plate. The inner ring of the toothed rotary support bearing is fixed to the bottom surface of the top support frame. The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom surface of the support frame in an adjustable position. This design achieves comprehensive benefits such as extended equipment lifespan, improved lead paste utilization, and increased production efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of lead-acid battery production equipment, specifically a movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, vacuum paste-forming machines are commonly used in the lead-acid battery paste production process. The advantages of vacuum paste-forming machines are uniform paste mixing and high mixing speed. Typically, one vacuum paste-forming machine is paired with two coating machines. To ensure continuous production, the lead paste produced by the vacuum paste-forming machine is stored in a movable lead paste storage hopper. This movable hopper is a key piece of equipment in the coating line; its operational stability and sealing performance directly affect the lead paste coating quality and production efficiency. To avoid lead paste accumulation in the movable hopper, causing density gradients or localized voids, the hopper needs to rotate periodically. Currently, this is achieved by a motor driving meshing gears. However, because the motor currently uses a rigid start-stop method, frequent mechanical impacts occur, leading to severe gear wear and increased gear meshing clearance. This increased clearance is not adjustable, and the average lifespan of the gears is less than 6 months, requiring downtime for maintenance and replacement. This prolonged equipment maintenance time negatively impacts production efficiency. The rigid start-stop operation generates periodic vibrations, and the increased gear meshing clearance leads to a greater increase in the spillage rate, resulting in a lead paste spillage rate as high as 3%-5%. The slewing support bearing, a key component in resisting radial loads, axial loads, and overturning moments in the moving paste hopper, is crucial for stability. However, the original slewing support bearing used a deep groove ball bearing, which is prone to breakage under radial impact loads. Bearing failure causes radial displacement of the auxiliary gears in the paste hopper, creating a vicious cycle. Therefore, it needs to be replaced on average every 2000 cycles. The overall production line efficiency loss is approximately 12%; the annual cost increase due to equipment maintenance and lead paste waste exceeds 200,000 yuan per unit. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this utility model is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a mobile paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids, thereby achieving comprehensive benefits such as extending equipment life, improving lead paste utilization, and increasing production efficiency.

[0004] A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids includes a top support frame, a paste hopper body, a slewing support bearing with external teeth, and a rotary drive device for driving the paste hopper body and the slewing support bearing with external teeth to rotate synchronously.

[0005] The upper part of the paste hopper body is installed in the top support frame, and the top of the top support frame is provided with a relief groove to allow the paste hopper body to feed in.

[0006] The toothed rotary support bearing is fitted onto the body of the medicated container. The toothed rotary support bearing is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the medicated container body via an outer ring locking plate. The inner ring of the toothed rotary support bearing is fixed to the bottom surface of the top support frame.

[0007] The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom surface of the support frame in an adjustable position.

[0008] The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom wall of the top support frame via an adjustable base. The adjustable base includes a vertical plate and a horizontal plate connected to the vertical plate. The horizontal plate has an oblong hole and a lug at both ends. The lug has a clearance hole. The bottom wall of the top support frame has threaded holes corresponding to the oblong holes and locking blocks corresponding to the lugs. The locking blocks have screw holes. The adjusting bolt passes through the clearance hole of the lug and is threaded to the screw hole on the corresponding locking block. The locking bolt passes through the oblong hole and is threaded to the threaded hole on the bottom wall of the support frame.

[0009] The rotary drive device includes a drive gear, a planetary reducer, and a variable frequency motor. The drive gear meshes with the external teeth of the slewing support bearing with external teeth. The drive gear is mounted on the output shaft of the planetary reducer, and the input shaft of the planetary reducer is connected to the output shaft of the variable frequency motor.

[0010] The planetary reducer and the variable frequency motor are mounted on an adjustable base, and the horizontal plate of the adjustable base has a semi-circular notch to accommodate the output shaft of the planetary reducer.

[0011] The support frame has circular slots to allow the output shaft and drive gear of the planetary reducer to pass through.

[0012] The outer diameter of the drive gear is smaller than that of the slewing bearing with external teeth, and the gear transmission ratio between the drive gear and the slewing bearing with external teeth is 1:15 to 1:20.

[0013] The slewing support bearing with external teeth is an external tooth type crossed roller slewing bearing.

[0014] The center of the paste hopper body has a bottom support frame. The upper end of the bottom support frame is fixed to the top support frame, and the lower end is open. The lower end opening of the bottom support frame protrudes from the discharge port of the paste hopper body. The lower end opening of the bottom support frame is provided with a slidable residual paste tray. The residual paste tray is slidably connected in two guide bars. The guide bars are symmetrically fixed on both sides of the lower end opening of the bottom support frame.

[0015] The body of the ointment container is a cone-shaped container that is larger at the top and smaller at the bottom, and the side wall of the ointment container body has an inclination angle of 60±2°.

[0016] The hopper body is equipped with a material level sensor, and the rotary support bearing with external teeth is equipped with a vibration acceleration sensor.

[0017] It also includes a PLC controller for collecting signals from level sensors and vibration acceleration sensors, and for controlling alarms and the movement of the residual paste tray.

[0018] Compared with existing technologies, this utility model adopts a drive combination of "variable frequency motor + planetary reducer", which provides smooth start and stop, reduces gear wear, effectively reduces vibration amplitude during start and stop, and avoids lead paste spillage. After reducing vibration by 80%, the life of the seals is increased by 3 times.

[0019] The clearance between the drive gear and the slewing bearing with external teeth can be adjusted via an adjustable base. When an increase in vibration is detected, the machine can be stopped in time by adjusting the clearance. This eliminates the need for complete replacement of the gears, effectively reducing equipment maintenance time, improving production efficiency, extending gear lifespan, and reducing production costs.

[0020] The gear transmission ratio (1:15~1:20) is used to match the high viscosity resistance of lead paste; the adjustable clearance + frequency conversion drive eliminates leakage caused by vibration; the centrifugal force generated by the periodic gear precision rotation transmission can reduce the density deviation of lead paste from >8% to <3%.

[0021] After using the structure of this application, the gear life increased from the original 4,000 hours to 12,000 hours, the equipment maintenance cycle decreased by 85%, and the lead paste leakage rate decreased by 84%. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of this utility model;

[0023] Figure 2 This is the left view of this utility model;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a front view of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a structural diagram of the adjustable base. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The specific embodiments of this utility model will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. This embodiment is implemented based on the technical solution of this utility model, but the scope of protection of this utility model is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0027] Example 1

[0028] like Figure 1-4The system comprises a top support frame 7, a paste hopper body 1, a slewing bearing 2 with external teeth, and a rotary drive device. The paste hopper body 1 is a conical hopper, wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, with a sidewall inclination angle of 60±2°. The upper part of the paste hopper body 1 is housed within the top support frame 7, while the lower part is located within the bottom support frame 13. The upper end of the bottom support frame 13 is fixed to the top support frame 7, while the lower end is open. The lower opening of the bottom support frame 13 protrudes from the discharge port of the paste hopper body 1. A slidable residual paste tray (not shown in the figure) is provided at the lower opening of the bottom support frame 13. The residual paste tray is slidably connected to two guide bars 14, which can be moved and slid within the two guide bars 14 by a cylinder. The guide bars 14 are symmetrically fixed on both sides of the lower opening of the bottom support frame 13. The top support frame 7 has clearance paste hoppers on its upper and lower end faces. The feed inlet of the main body 1 has a clearance slot. A slewing bearing 2 with external teeth is fitted onto the outside of the paste hopper main body 1. The slewing bearing 2 with external teeth is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the paste hopper main body 1 via an outer ring locking plate 3. The outer ring locking plate 3 is used to prevent the slewing bearing 2 with external teeth from rotating relative to the paste hopper main body 1 during operation, and can also bear radial impact loads. The inner ring of the slewing bearing 2 with external teeth is fixed to the bottom surface of the top support frame 7. The slewing bearing 2 with external teeth is an external tooth type crossed roller slewing bearing that can withstand large radial loads, axial loads, and overturning moments. The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom wall of the top support frame 7 via an adjustable base 8. The side wall of the top support frame 7 has a window 16 for accommodating the rotary drive device.

[0029] The rotary drive device includes a drive gear 4, a planetary reducer 5, and a variable frequency motor 6. The drive gear 4 meshes with the external teeth of the slewing bearing 2 with external teeth. The drive gear 4 is mounted on the output shaft of the planetary reducer 5. The input shaft of the planetary reducer 5 is connected to the output shaft of the variable frequency motor 6. The planetary reducer is a Newcatel PL120-18 (speed ratio 1:18, output torque 350 N·m), and the variable frequency motor is a Yaskawa SGM7G-1EA6C. The drive gear is made of 20CrMnTi carburized and quenched (module 4, number of teeth 18, hardness HRC58-62). The outer diameter of the drive gear 4 is smaller than that of the slewing bearing 2 with external teeth. The gear transmission ratio between the drive gear 4 and the slewing bearing 2 with external teeth is 1:15~1:20. The torque is amplified to match the high viscosity resistance of the lead paste.

[0030] The adjustable base 8 includes a vertical plate and a horizontal plate connected to the vertical plate. The horizontal plate has an elongated slot 12 and a lug 9 at both ends. The lug 9 has a clearance hole. The bottom wall of the top support frame 7 has threaded holes corresponding to the elongated slots and locking blocks 10 corresponding to the lugs 9. The locking blocks 10 have threaded holes. Adjusting bolts pass through the clearance holes of the lugs 9 and are threaded into the corresponding threaded holes on the locking blocks 10. Locking bolts pass through the elongated slots 12 and are threaded into the threaded holes on the bottom wall of the support frame 7. The planetary reducer 5 and the variable frequency motor 6 of the rotary drive device are mounted on the adjustable base 8. The horizontal plate of the adjustable base 8 has a semi-circular notch 11 for accommodating the output shaft of the planetary reducer 5. The top support frame 7 has a circular slot for accommodating the output shaft of the planetary reducer 5 and the drive gear 4. When adjusting the adjustable base 8, use a feeler gauge to measure the gear backlash, and precisely adjust it to 0.25-0.35mm by adjusting the bolt and tightening it. Then, pass the locking bolt through the waist-shaped elongated hole 12 and thread it into the threaded hole on the bottom wall of the support frame 7 to complete the adjustment.

[0031] The top support frame 7 has a hanging lug (not shown in the figure), which can be moved horizontally by a crane. This is existing technology and is not the focus of this application.

[0032] Example 2

[0033] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, such as low automation, reliance on manual experience for material feeding, and fluctuations in paste weight of ±15%, as well as the lack of real-time monitoring, this application includes a material level sensor installed inside the paste hopper body 1, a vibration acceleration sensor mounted on the toothed rotary support bearing 2, a PLC controller, and an alarm. The alarm is connected to the output of the PLC controller. The PLC controller collects signals from the material level sensor and the vibration acceleration sensor, and controls the movement of the excess paste tray based on the material level signal. When the vibration acceleration sensor detects an increase in vibration amplitude, the PLC controls the alarm to sound, allowing the equipment administrator to stop the machine promptly and adjust the clearance. This eliminates the need for complete replacement, effectively reducing equipment maintenance time, improving production efficiency, extending gear lifespan, and lowering production costs. The PLC controller uses a Siemens S7-1200, the material level sensor uses a Pepperl+Fuchs NBN4-12GM50-E2, and the vibration acceleration sensor uses a Schenck VIB-5.0 with a vibration alarm threshold of 2.5 m / s². The PLC controller collects sensor signals and controls the cylinder and alarm to sound. This is existing technology and not the focus of this utility model. This embodiment will not elaborate further.

[0034] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the technical solutions of this utility model. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations within the scope of the claims, and such modifications and variations should all fall within the protection scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids, characterized in that: It includes a top support frame (7), a paste hopper body (1), a slewing support bearing (2) with external teeth, and a rotary drive device for driving the paste hopper body (1) and the slewing support bearing (2) with external teeth to rotate synchronously. The upper part of the paste hopper body (1) is installed in the top support frame (7), and the top of the top support frame (7) is provided with a relief groove for the feed inlet of the paste hopper body (1); The toothed rotary support bearing (2) is fitted outside the paste hopper body (1). The toothed rotary support bearing (2) is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the paste hopper body (1) via the outer ring locking plate (3). The inner ring of the toothed rotary support bearing (2) is fixed on the bottom surface of the top support frame (7). The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom surface of the support frame (7) with an adjustable relative position.

2. The movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rotary drive device is mounted on the bottom wall of the top support frame (7) via an adjustable base (8). The adjustable base (8) includes a vertical plate and a horizontal plate connected to the vertical plate. The horizontal plate has a waist-shaped elongated hole (12) and a support ear (9) at both ends. The support ear (9) has a clearance hole. The bottom wall of the top support frame (7) has a threaded hole corresponding to the waist-shaped hole and a locking block (10) corresponding to the support ear (9). The locking block (10) has a screw hole. The adjusting bolt passes through the clearance hole of the support ear (9) and is threadedly connected to the screw hole on the corresponding locking block (10). The locking bolt passes through the waist-shaped elongated hole (12) and is threadedly connected to the threaded hole on the bottom wall of the support frame (7).

3. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The rotary drive device includes a drive gear (4), a planetary reducer (5), and a variable frequency motor (6). The drive gear (4) meshes with the external teeth of the slewing support bearing (2) with external teeth. The drive gear (4) is mounted on the output shaft of the planetary reducer. The input shaft of the planetary reducer is connected to the output shaft of the variable frequency motor (6).

4. The movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 3, characterized in that: The planetary reducer (5) and the variable frequency motor (6) are mounted on an adjustable base (8), and the horizontal plate of the adjustable base (8) has a semi-circular notch (11) to accommodate the output shaft of the planetary reducer (5).

5. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 4, characterized in that: The support frame (7) has a circular cut groove that allows the output shaft of the planetary reducer (5) and the drive gear (4) to pass through.

6. The movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 3, characterized in that: The outer diameter of the drive gear (4) is smaller than that of the slewing bearing (2) with external teeth, and the gear transmission ratio between the drive gear (4) and the slewing bearing (2) with external teeth is 1:15~1:

20.

7. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The slewing support bearing (2) with external teeth is an external tooth type crossed roller slewing bearing.

8. The movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1, characterized in that: The paste hopper body (1) has a bottom support frame (13) at its center. The upper end of the bottom support frame (13) is fixed to the top support frame (7) and the lower end is open. The lower end opening of the bottom support frame (13) protrudes from the discharge port of the paste hopper body (1). The lower end opening of the bottom support frame (13) is provided with a slidable residual paste tray. The residual paste tray is slidably connected in two guide bars (14). The guide bars (14) are symmetrically fixed on both sides of the lower end opening of the bottom support frame (13).

9. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1, characterized in that: The paste container body (1) is a cone-shaped container that is larger at the top and smaller at the bottom, and the side wall of the paste container body (1) has an inclination angle of 60±2°.

10. A movable paste hopper for coating lead-acid battery grids according to claim 1, 8, or 9, characterized in that: The hopper body (1) is equipped with a material level sensor, and the rotary support bearing (2) with external teeth is equipped with a vibration acceleration sensor. It also includes a PLC controller for collecting signals from level sensors and vibration acceleration sensors, and for controlling alarms and the movement of the residual paste tray.

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