Regenerative storage battery management system and program

Abstract

To grasp a recycling rate of a storage battery manufactured using a regenerative metal regenerated from a waste storage battery delivered by a user to a regenerator.SOLUTION: A regenerative storage battery management system includes: an acquisition part that acquires information related to an amount of a waste storage battery which is a storage battery used by a user and has been delivered to a regenerator; a calculation part that calculates information related to a recycling rate of a storage battery manufactured using a regenerative metal regenerated by the regenerator based on the amount of the waste storage battery acquired by the acquisition part; and an issuance part that issues a certificate for the user in which the information related to the recycling rate calculated by the calculation part is described.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a regenerative battery management system and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a recycling support system that supports the operation of a storage battery recycling system, which consists of a process in which the owner of the storage battery discards the battery, a collection and transportation company collects and transports the battery, a recycling processing company separates the battery into recycled material and waste and reuses the recycled material, and a waste processing company disposes of the waste.The recycling support system is characterized in that it includes a server device and a first communication terminal device that can communicate with each other via a network, the server device includes a lease information storage means that stores information regarding the storage battery lease contract between the storage battery owner and the storage battery user, and a first network communication means that sends and receives the information, the first communication terminal device includes a second network communication means that sends and receives the information, and the storage battery owner leases the storage battery in accordance with the lease contract, and the storage battery user receives the lease in accordance with the lease contract. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-126669 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the recycling process for storage batteries such as lead-acid batteries, the storage battery manufacturer sells or leases the storage battery to the storage battery user, the user discards the deteriorated storage battery after using the storage battery, a collection company collects the discarded storage battery and hands it over to a recycling company, the recycling company recycles the renewable metals such as lead contained in the discarded storage battery, the storage battery manufacturer purchases the recycled metals and manufactures storage batteries, and the storage battery user purchases storage batteries using the recycled metals.

[0005] In this case, users of storage batteries cannot ascertain the recycling rate of the batteries that use the discarded renewable metals. Furthermore, a high recycling rate of storage batteries that use renewable metals leads to increased corporate value for users' customers, such as contributing to efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

[0006] The object of the present disclosure is to provide a technology that makes it possible to grasp the recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using renewable metals reclaimed from waste storage batteries handed over by users to recycling companies. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A recycled battery management system in one aspect of the present disclosure includes an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the amount of used batteries that have been handed over to a recycling company after being used by a user, a calculation unit that calculates information regarding the recycling rate of batteries manufactured using recycled metals recycled by the recycling company based on the amount of used batteries acquired by the acquisition unit, and an issuance unit that issues a certificate to the user that includes information regarding the recycling rate calculated by the calculation unit.

[0008] A program in one aspect of the present disclosure causes a computer to perform the following steps: acquiring information regarding the amount of used storage batteries that have been handed over to a recycling company after being used by a user; calculating information regarding the recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using recycled metals recycled by the recycling company based on the acquired amount of used storage batteries; and issuing a certificate to the user that includes information regarding the calculated recycling rate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to grasp the recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using renewable metals reclaimed from waste storage batteries handed over by users to recycling companies. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of a recycled battery management system. [Figure 2] This is a schematic block diagram of an example of a computer that functions as a battery manufacturer server, user server, intermediary server, collection company server, recycling company server, and manufacturer terminal device in a recycled battery management system. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a terminal device of a storage battery manufacturer. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in a storage unit of a terminal device of a storage battery manufacturer. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the flow of a recycled battery management system. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the flow of a recycled battery management system. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a recycling certificate for a storage battery using renewable metals. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] First, definitions of terms will be explained.

[0012] A storage battery manufacturer is, for example, a person who manufactures and sells storage batteries. A user of a battery may be a person who directly purchases or leases a battery from the battery manufacturer, but if the battery is sold, leased, or transferred to another person (called the second user) through a person who directly purchased it (called the first user), the second user is also included in the user of the battery. Also, if the second user sells, leases, or transfers the battery to a third user, the third user is also included in the user of the battery, and even if the third user is the nth user, he or she is still considered a user of the battery.

[0013] The person disposing of a used storage battery may be the first user, the second user, the third user, or the nth user. For example, if the first user sells, leases, or transfers the battery to the second user, the second user may entrust the first user with disposing of the battery.

[0014] A storage battery purchased by a first user is defined as a used storage battery at the time of purchase. It does not matter whether the battery was actually used, but a purchased storage battery that has reached the end of its life due to deterioration, etc., can be disposed of. In addition, a storage battery is also defined as a used storage battery when the first user incorporates it as a component into a product that requires a storage battery and sells it.

[0015] The work of a collection company includes, for example, the collection and transportation of storage batteries discarded by users. This may be done by one collection company, by two or more collection companies sharing the work, or by a recycling company. The collection company may transport the storage batteries discarded by users directly to the recycling company, or may transport them to the recycling company via a company specializing in sorting or dismantling. Alternatively, an intermediary may work in cooperation with the collection company. Storage batteries discarded by users and handed over to a recycling company are defined as waste storage batteries. The amount of waste storage batteries is the total mass of all the waste storage batteries.

[0016] The work of separating or dismantling discarded batteries into recyclable metals and other components may be carried out by a collection company, a recycling company, or a company that specializes in sorting or dismantling. The recycling business involves refining and recycling renewable metals contained in used batteries.

[0017] The metals that are reclaimed and regenerated by recycling companies are defined as "recycled metals." Furthermore, the metals that are regenerated by recycling companies from raw materials such as ores are defined as "new metals."

[0018] Furthermore, examples of renewable metals include lead, lithium, copper, nickel, and zinc.

[0019] An embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, identical or equivalent elements are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted. In the following, a lead-acid battery will be used as an example of a storage battery that is used by a user and delivered to a recycling company.

[0020] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a recycled battery management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The recycled battery management system 100 includes a manufacturer-side server 10 used by a manufacturer of lead-acid batteries, a user-side server 12 used by a user of lead-acid batteries, a collector-side server 16 used by a collector, and a recycling-company-side server 18 used by a recycling company.

[0021] The manufacturer server 10, the user server 12, the collection company server 16, and the recycling company server 18 are connected via a network 30 such as the Internet.

[0022] The user-side server 12 is an information processing device that transmits to the collection company-side server 16 a request for collection of the lead-acid batteries to be disposed of, information on the quantity of lead-acid batteries to be disposed of, and information on the collection location, and receives control slips and the like in response to this collection request.

[0023] The intermediary may request the collection company server 16 to collect lead-acid batteries discarded by users, transmit information on the amount of lead-acid batteries to be collected and collection locations, and issue a management slip to the user server 12. In this case, the intermediary server 14 is connected via a network 30 such as the Internet. Here, the intermediary is a party that manages the flow of waste storage batteries.

[0024] The collector server 16 is an information processing device that receives a request for collection of lead-acid batteries from the user server 12 or the intermediary server 14, receives information on the quantity of lead-acid batteries to be collected and the collection location, issues a control sheet or the like in response to the collection request, and transmits the quantity of lead-acid batteries to be handed over to the recycling company server 18.

[0025] The recycling company server 18 is an information processing device for receiving the quantity of lead-acid batteries to be delivered from the intermediary company server 14 or the collection company server 16.

[0026] The manufacturer-side server 10 is an information processing device that acquires information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries, which is the amount of lead-acid batteries discarded by users and delivered to recycling companies, from the user-side server 12, the intermediary-side server 14, or the collection company-side server 16, and stores the information for each user, and also stores information on the amount of recycled lead purchased from recycling companies, the amount of new lead purchased from refineries, and the amount of lead-acid batteries using new lead and recycled lead that are sold to users.

[0027] A terminal device 22 is connected to the manufacturer-side server 10, and a printing device 24 is connected to the terminal device 22.

[0028] The terminal device 22 is an information processing device that acquires information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries discarded by users from the manufacturer-side server 10 and is used to issue recycling certificates for lead-acid batteries, as will be described in detail later. The terminal device 22 is configured from a mobile terminal, a personal computer, or the like. Here, mobile terminals include smartphone terminals, mobile phones, and PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) terminals. Personal computers include notebook computer terminals and desktop computer terminals.

[0029] As an example, the printing device 24 is a multifunction device having multiple functions such as a printing function, a scanning function, a copying function, a facsimile function, etc. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the printing device 24 has a function of digitizing various documents such as recycling certificates and converting them into images.

[0030] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the manufacturer side server 10, user side server 12, intermediary side server 14, recovery company side server 16, recycling company side server 18, and terminal device 22 in a recycled storage battery management system 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] 2, the manufacturer server 10, user server 12, intermediary server 14, collector server 16, recycling server 18, and terminal device 22 each have a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 31, which is a processor that executes an operating system, application programs, etc., a ROM (Read Only Memory) 32, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 33, storage 34, an input unit 35, a display unit 36, and a communication interface (I / F) 37. Each component is connected to each other via a bus 38 so that they can communicate with each other.

[0032] The CPU 31 is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each component. That is, the CPU 31 reads a program from the ROM 32 or the storage 34 and executes the program using the RAM 33 as a work area. The CPU 31 controls the above components and performs various arithmetic processing in accordance with the program stored in the ROM 32 or the storage 34. In this embodiment, the ROM 32 or the storage 34 stores programs for performing various processing.

[0033] The ROM 32 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 33 serves as a working area and temporarily stores programs or data. The storage 34 is configured with an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive) and stores various programs including the operating system and various data.

[0034] The input unit 35 includes a pointing device such as a mouse and a keyboard, and is used to perform various inputs.

[0035] The display unit 36 ​​is, for example, a liquid crystal display, and displays various information. The display unit 36 ​​may be a touch panel type and function as the input unit 35.

[0036] The communication interface 37 is an interface for communicating with other devices, and uses standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), FDDI, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0037] Next, the functional configuration of the terminal device 22 used by the manufacturer will be described. Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the terminal device 22.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 3, the terminal device 22 functionally includes a memory unit 41, an acquisition unit 42, a display unit 43, an operation unit 44, a data transmission / reception unit 45, a calculation unit 46, and an issuance unit 47.

[0039] The data transmission / reception unit 45 transmits and receives data to and from external devices such as the manufacturer-side server 10 and the printing device 24 .

[0040] The display unit 43 displays various information. The operation unit 44 accepts various operations and inputs of various information to the printing device 24. The display unit 43 and the operation unit 44 may be configured to form a touch panel that is an operation screen.

[0041] The acquisition unit 42 acquires information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries that have been used by users and handed over to recycling companies. The information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries that is acquired may be acquired on a regular basis or monthly basis.

[0042] The storage unit 41 stores the quantity of waste lead-acid batteries acquired by the acquisition unit 42 for each user, and further stores the quantity of waste lead-acid batteries for each user tallied over a predetermined period. Here, the number of recycling companies to which the waste lead-acid batteries are delivered may be one or more. It is more efficient to have waste lead-acid batteries collected by a collection company located close to the collection site and recycled by a recycling company located close to the collection site, as this reduces transportation costs. That is, even if there are multiple recycling companies, the quantity of waste lead-acid batteries delivered to one or more recycling companies for each user over a predetermined period is tallied and stored. In one example, as shown in FIG. 4 , the storage unit 41 stores the total quantity of waste lead-acid batteries discarded by Company X, a user of lead-acid batteries, and delivered to Businesses A to C, recycling companies, respectively, over a predetermined period, from (mm / dd / yyyy / yyyy) to (mm+α) / (dd+β) / yyyy, as the quantity of waste lead-acid batteries for Company X over the period. The yyyy represents the year, mm represents an integer from 1 to 12, dd represents an integer from 1 to 31, α represents an integer from 0 to 11, and β represents an integer from 0 to 30. α and β cannot be 0 at the same time.

[0043] The calculation unit 46 calculates information on the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries newly manufactured using recycled lead recycled by a recycling company, based on the amount of discarded lead-acid batteries acquired by the acquisition unit 42.

[0044] Here, the information on the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries is, for example, information indicating, as a recycling rate, the amount of lead-acid batteries newly manufactured for a user using recycled lead, calculated based on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries of the user over a predetermined period acquired by the acquisition unit 42. That is, if all of the new lead-acid batteries using lead recycled from the user's waste lead-acid batteries are sold to the user, the recycling rate can be indicated as 100%, for example.

[0045] The amount of recycled lead recycled from waste lead-acid batteries is calculated based on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries. Specifically, the amount of recycled lead recycled from waste lead-acid batteries is calculated based on a predetermined ratio that is the average refining yield of waste lead-acid batteries. Then, the amount of lead-acid batteries newly manufactured using recycled lead is calculated based on the calculated amount of recycled lead. In other words, the amount of lead-acid batteries newly manufactured using recycled lead can be calculated based on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries delivered to the recycler and the refining rate of waste lead-acid batteries.

[0046] Specifically, the value calculated by multiplying the amount of waste lead-acid batteries of the user for a predetermined period acquired by the acquisition unit 42 by a predetermined ratio which is the average refining yield of waste lead-acid batteries is used as the amount of recycled lead purchased by the manufacturer. Then, the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead, which is the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead purchased by the manufacturer for the user, is calculated from this amount of recycled lead. In other words, the value calculated by multiplying the amount of waste lead-acid batteries of the user acquired by the acquisition unit 42 by the refining rate based on the refining yield can be used as the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead.

[0047] For example, when the refining rate is taken into account, let Y% be the refining rate of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead reclaimed from waste lead-acid batteries. For example, if the amount of waste lead-acid batteries used by Company X over a given period is Z tons, the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead reclaimed from Z tons of waste lead-acid batteries will be Z × (Y / 100) tons. Therefore, if Company X sells Z × (Y / 100) tons of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead, the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries will be 100%. In other words, this can be expressed as {amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured for users using recycled lead, Z × (Y / 100) tons / refining rate (Y / 100) / amount of waste lead-acid batteries, Z tons} × 100 = 100%, which indicates that 100% of waste lead-acid batteries were recycled and new lead-acid batteries were manufactured at Company X in that month.

[0048] The amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured for users using recycled lead is the amount in the case where all of the batteries are purchased by the users. If all of the batteries are not purchased, the recycling rate will be as follows: Recycling rate (%) = n × Z × (Y / 100) / (Y / 100) / Z = n n: Percentage of recycled lead-acid batteries purchased by the user (100 if all purchased) Z: Amount of waste lead-acid batteries disposed by users during a specified period Y: Refining rate (%)

[0049] In addition, in the case of a lead-acid battery manufactured using both recycled lead and new lead reclaimed from Z [tons] of waste lead-acid batteries, the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead is given by the following formula (1). {Z×(Y / 100)} / (W / 100)=Z×Y / W[ton]···(1) Here, W represents the proportion (%) of recycled lead contained in the total lead components contained in the lead-acid battery. In this case, the recycling rate may be W({recycled lead / (recycled lead+new lead)}×100), or may be calculated from the following formula (2). {(Z×Y / W)×(n / 100) / (Z×Y / W)}×100=n...(2)

[0050] Furthermore, the calculation unit 46 may calculate, as information on the recycling rate, the ratio of the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead that is actually recycled from the amount of waste lead-acid batteries of the user in a predetermined period acquired by the acquisition unit 42. That is, in this case, the recycling rate can be calculated, for example, by the following formula. Recycling rate (%) = (amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead / amount of waste lead-acid batteries) x 100

[0051] The calculation unit 46 may also calculate, as information on the recycling rate, information on the degree of recycling of recycled lead contained in a lead-acid battery newly manufactured using recycled lead recycled by a recycling company. In this case, the recycling rate of a lead-acid battery is Y [%], which is the refining rate at which impurities and the like are removed from the recyclable lead component contained in a waste lead-acid battery and the lead is refined into a state suitable for use in a lead-acid battery.

[0052] The recycling rate on the recycling certificate, which will be described later, can be written and issued in a manner that meets the user's requests.

[0053] Furthermore, the calculation unit 46 calculates the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction achieved by the recycled lead compared to new lead. Specifically, the calculation unit 46 calculates the difference between the amount of CO2 emissions resulting from the production of new lead-acid batteries using new lead refined by a smelter using raw materials such as ore, and the amount of CO2 emissions resulting from the production of new lead-acid batteries using recycled lead refined by a recycler from lead contained in waste lead-acid batteries. In other words, the calculation unit 46 calculates the difference between the amount of CO2 emissions resulting from the production of new lead by a smelter refining raw materials, and the amount of CO2 emissions resulting from the production of recycled lead by a recycler from lead contained in waste lead-acid batteries being refined and recycled.

[0054] As an example, if the GWP (global warming potential) of new lead is 2.320t-CO2eq / t-lead and the GWP (global warming potential) of recycled lead is 0.652t-CO2eq / t-lead, it can be calculated using the following formula. Carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction = (2.320−0.652)×Z×(Y / 100)[t]=1.668×Z×Y / 100[t-CO2eq] Note that the [t] represents ton, a unit of mass, and the [t-CO2eq] represents the unit given to the value obtained by multiplying the emissions of various greenhouse gases by their global warming potential and converting them into CO2 equivalents.

[0055] The issuing unit 47 issues a recycling certificate 71, which is a certificate for the user that contains information regarding the recycling rate of the lead-acid battery calculated by the calculation unit 46, as well as the amount of CO2 reduction compared to new lead, and displays it on the display screen of the terminal device 22.

[0056] The terminal device 22 can input necessary information into the recycling certificate 71 displayed on the screen and store it in the storage unit 41, or print it out using the printer 24. The terminal device 22 can also input necessary information into the recycling certificate 71 displayed on the screen and store it in the storage unit 41, and transmit it to the user server 12 via the manufacturer server 10.

[0057] Next, a processing flow in the regenerative battery management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG.

[0058] (1) First, a manufacturer of lead-acid batteries sells or leases lead-acid batteries to users of lead-acid batteries, and the sales volume to users is stored in the manufacturer's server 10. The lead-acid batteries manufactured and sold here include lead-acid batteries using recycled lead. In other words, the lead-acid batteries sold to users here are lead-acid batteries using new lead and recycled lead.

[0059] (2) Next, after the user of the lead-acid battery has used the battery and it has deteriorated, the user requests a collection company or an intermediary to collect the lead-acid battery to be disposed of. At this time, the user server 12 transmits to the collection company server 16 or the intermediary server 14 a request for collection of the lead-acid battery to be disposed of, the quantity of the lead-acid battery to be disposed of, and information on the collection location.

[0060] (3) Next, the collection company issues a control sheet or the like to the user in response to a request for collection of the discarded lead-acid batteries. The collection company also notifies the manufacturer of information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries discarded by the user and to be delivered to the recycling company. At this time, the collection company server 16 issues and transmits a control sheet or the like to the user server 12 in response to the request for collection of the discarded lead-acid batteries. At this time, the collection company server 16 also transmits information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the recycling company server 18. At this time, the collection company server 16 also transmits information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the manufacturer server 10.

[0061] When an intermediary is used, the collection company is requested to collect the lead-acid batteries discarded by the user, and information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the recycling company is communicated. When an intermediary is used, the manufacturer is also notified of information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the recycling company. At this time, the intermediary server 14 issues and transmits to the user server 12 a management form or the like in response to the request for collection of the discarded lead-acid batteries, and transmits to the collection company server 16 a request for collection of the lead-acid batteries discarded by the user, the amount of lead-acid batteries to be collected, and information regarding the collection location. At this time, the intermediary server 14 also transmits information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the recycling company server 18. At this time, the intermediary server 14 also transmits information regarding the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be delivered to the manufacturer server 10.

[0062] (4) Next, the collection company collects the waste lead-acid batteries. At this time, the collection company server 16 may receive a collection request for the lead-acid batteries discarded from the user, receive information on the amount of lead-acid batteries to be collected and the collection location, and transmit information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries to be handed over to the recycling company server 18.

[0063] (5) Next, the recycling company collects the waste lead-acid batteries collected by the collection company, refines the lead from the collected waste lead-acid batteries, and sells the recycled lead to the lead-acid battery manufacturer. At this time, the recycling company's server 18 stores information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries.

[0064] (6) Next, the lead-acid battery manufacturer purchases recycled lead from the recycler and manufactures lead-acid batteries. At this time, the manufacturer's server 10 stores information about the amount of recycled lead purchased from the recycler's server 18.

[0065] (7) The manufacturer of lead-acid batteries manufactures lead-acid batteries using new lead purchased from a refinery and recycled lead purchased from a recycling company. The manufacturer-side server 10 then issues a recycling certificate 71 based on the information acquired in (3) above about the amount of waste lead-acid batteries discarded by users and delivered to the recycling company.

[0066] In this way, manufacturers of lead-acid batteries can sell or lease lead-acid batteries containing new lead and recycled lead to users of lead-acid batteries, obtain information on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries disposed of by the users of lead-acid batteries, and issue lead-acid battery recycling certificates 71 to the users.

[0067] 7 shows an example of the recycle certificate 71. The recycle certificate 71 is proof that waste lead-acid batteries discarded by users during a specified period from yyyy / mm / dd to yyyy / (mm+α) / (dd+β) were 100% reused (recycled) to manufacture new lead-acid batteries.

[0068] An example of a recycling certificate 71 includes the amount of waste lead-acid batteries that users have handed over to recycling businesses over a specified period of time, an example of information about the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries, such as the amount of recycled lead calculated based on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries, the amount of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead based on this amount of recycled lead, the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries, and the amount of CO2 reduction compared to new lead.

[0069] Lead-acid battery users can understand the recycling rate of their own lead-acid batteries and the resulting CO2 reductions through the recycling certificate71. As a result, this leads to an improvement in the corporate value of users to their customers, including contributing to SDGs efforts.

[0070] As described above, according to the recycled battery management system 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a recycling certificate 71 can be issued based on the amount of waste lead-acid batteries handed over to a recycling company, and the recycling rate of lead-acid batteries manufactured using recycled lead reclaimed from waste lead-acid batteries handed over by users to a recycling company can be determined.

[0071] [Variations] Various examples of the present disclosure have been described above in detail. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the above examples. Various modifications can be made to the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

[0072] In the above embodiment, a case has been described in which a new lead-acid battery is manufactured using recycled lead recycled from waste lead-acid batteries, but the present disclosure is not limited to this, and can also be applied to cases such as manufacturing a new lithium-ion battery using recycled lithium or recycled copper recycled from waste lithium-ion batteries, manufacturing a new zinc-acid battery using recycled zinc recycled from waste zinc-acid batteries, and manufacturing a new alkaline-acid battery using recycled nickel recycled from waste alkaline-acid batteries.

[0073] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the case of calculating the recycling rate of a storage battery has been described, but the present disclosure is not limited to this, and can be similarly applied to the case of calculating the recycling rate of other recycled materials.

[0074] Furthermore, in order to improve the traceability of storage batteries and recycled materials, the present disclosure can also be similarly applied to cases where digital IDs are assigned to storage batteries and recycled materials and the recycling rate is calculated using these digital IDs.

[0075] For example, a QR code (registered trademark) or RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag is attached to each storage battery and recyclable material, and a digital ID is assigned to each storage battery and recyclable material. Information associated with the digital ID includes transaction information for the storage battery or recyclable material, such as the manufacturing date, manufacturer, user, intermediary, collector, collection date and time, recycler, and recycling status. The information associated with the digital ID can be shared among the manufacturer server 10, user server 12, intermediary server 14, collector server 16, and recycler server 18, allowing the manufacturer, user, intermediary, collector, and recycler to grasp the situation in real time.

[0076] In other words, manufacturers of storage batteries or recycled materials can calculate information about the recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using recycled metals based on the digital IDs assigned to the storage batteries and recycled materials, and can issue recycling certificates 71 for the storage batteries or recycled materials to users.

[0077] Furthermore, the information associated with these digital IDs is recorded in chronological order in a chain, in units of blocks each containing one or more pieces of transaction information (also called history information).

[0078] In other words, the information associated with the digital ID is recorded by blockchain at each step from the manufacture of the storage battery or recycled material to its reuse (e.g., the date of manufacture, the place of manufacture, the manufacturer, the specifications of the materials used, the source of the recycled material, the collection, sorting, processing, etc. steps of the recycling process, how it was reused, etc.), and the recorded information is distributed to each server and stored on a distributed network. This prevents data tampering at each step from manufacture to reuse, improves the transparency of data and transactions, and ensures the reliability of recycling certificates.

[0079] Furthermore, by using blockchain to record information associated with the digital IDs assigned to the storage batteries and recycled materials on the manufacturer server 10, user server 12, intermediary server 14, collector server 16, and recycling company server 18, the manufacturer, user, intermediary, collector, and recycling company can each access and view data such as historical information.

[0080] In the above embodiments, the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic device, etc.).

[0081] Furthermore, the operations of the processors in the above embodiments may not only be performed by a single processor, but may also be performed by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processors is not limited to the order described in the above embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate.

[0082] Furthermore, the processing of each server in the above embodiment may be distributed and executed by a plurality of computers connected via a network. [Explanation of symbols]

[0083] 10 Manufacturer's Server 12 User server 14 Intermediary server 16 Collection company server 18 Reproduction company server 22 Terminal equipment 24 Printing device 41 Storage section 42 Acquisition Department 46 Calculation section 47 Publishing Department 100 Regenerative Battery Management System

Claims

1. an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the amount of used storage batteries that have been handed over by users to recycling companies; a calculation unit that calculates information about a recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using recycled metals recycled by a recycling company based on the amount of used storage batteries acquired by the acquisition unit; an issuing unit that issues a certificate for the user that includes information about the recycling rate calculated by the calculating unit; A regenerative battery management system equipped with

2. The calculation unit calculates, as information about the recycling rate, information about the degree of regeneration of recycled metals contained in a storage battery newly manufactured using recycled metals regenerated by a recycling company. The regenerative battery management system according to claim 1 .

3. The information regarding the recycling rate is information indicating, as a recycling rate, an amount of storage batteries newly manufactured using recycled metals calculated based on the amount of waste storage batteries acquired by the acquisition unit. The regenerative battery management system according to claim 1 .

4. The calculation unit calculates the amount of carbon dioxide emissions reduced by manufacturing a new storage battery using recycled metals recycled by a recycling company compared to manufacturing a new storage battery using newly refined metals, The issuing unit further describes the carbon dioxide emission reduction amount calculated by the calculation unit on the certificate and issues it. The regenerative battery management system according to claim 1 .

5. The recycled battery management system of claim 1, wherein the storage battery is assigned a digital ID, and information associated with the digital ID is shared among manufacturers, users, collectors, and recycling companies.

6. The recycled battery management system of claim 5, wherein information associated with the digital ID is recorded at each step by a blockchain and stored on a distributed network.

7. A step of acquiring information regarding the amount of used storage batteries that have been handed over by users to recycling companies; Calculating information about a recycling rate of storage batteries manufactured using recycled metals recycled by a recycling company based on the acquired amount of used storage batteries; issuing a certificate to the user containing information about the calculated recycling rate; A program that causes a computer to execute the following.

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