Fluid application device

Abstract

To provide a fluid coating apparatus capable of applying a fluid to a surface to be coated which is not a uniform plane at a uniform height.SOLUTION: The fluid application device 10 includes a nozzle 11 having a slit-shaped discharge port 11A for discharging a thermally conductive material T and a guide part for guiding the thermally conductive material T discharged from the discharge port 11A to the surface S of the battery case. The guide portion includes a fixed guide plate 12 extending from an upper end of the discharge port side 11A and a movable guide plate 13 extending from a lower end of the discharge port side 11A, the movable guide plate 13 is composed of a plurality of movable guide pieces 14 arranged along a longitudinal direction of the discharge port side 11A, the movable guide piece 14 has a base end piece side 11A extending from the lower end of the discharge port side 14A and a movable piece side 14A rotatably supported with respect to the base end piece side 14B, and a tip of the movable piece side 14B is in contact with the surfaces S of the battery cases.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a fluid application device that applies a fluid to a surface to be applied. [Background technology]

[0002] Fluid application devices that apply a fluid to a surface are known. Here, the fluid includes paint, adhesive, thermally conductive material, etc. Conventionally, fluid application devices ensure the quality of the applied surface by applying a fluid to the surface to a uniform thickness. However, the surface to be applied may not be a uniform flat surface, but may have irregularities. In such cases, it is difficult to apply a fluid to a uniform thickness.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a fluid application device that moves a nozzle up and down depending on the height (unevenness) of a surface to be coated. The fluid application device of Patent Document 1 can apply a coating to a uniform thickness on the surface to be coated.

[0004] For example, a thermally conductive material may be applied to the surface of a battery case to promote heat exchange in an automotive battery. In this case, the thermally conductive material is crushed after application, so it must be applied to a uniform height. However, if the surface of the battery case is flat and uneven, it is necessary to apply an excessively thick layer of thermally conductive material from the beginning, or to apply even more thermally conductive material after crushing it. As a result, the material cost of the thermally conductive material increases.

[0005] Here, the fluid application device of Patent Document 1 can apply a uniform thickness of fluid in accordance with the unevenness of the surface to be coated, but cannot make the coated surface have a uniform height. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 09-253551 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a fluid application device that can apply a fluid at a uniform height to a surface that is not uniformly flat. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The fluid application device of the present invention is a fluid application device that applies a fluid to a surface to be applied that is not at least a uniform plane, and is equipped with a nozzle having a slit-shaped outlet for discharging the fluid, and a guide section that guides the fluid discharged from the outlet to the surface to be applied, the guide section including a fixed guide plate extending from the upper end of the outlet and a movable guide plate extending from the lower end of the outlet, the movable guide plate consisting of a plurality of movable guide pieces arranged along the longitudinal direction of the outlet, the movable guide piece having a base end piece extending from the lower end of the outlet and a movable piece supported so as to be freely rotatable relative to the base end piece, and the tip of the movable piece is in contact with the surface to be applied. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the fluid application device of the present invention, it is possible to apply fluid at a uniform height to a surface to be applied that is not uniformly flat. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view illustrating a fluid application device according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which a fluid is applied by a fluid application device that is an example of an embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another example of a fluid application device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] An example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below. In the following description, specific shapes, materials, directions, numerical values, etc. are examples for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and can be appropriately changed according to the application, purpose, specifications, etc.

[0012] [Fluid application device] A fluid application device 10 as an example of an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, a fluid application device 10 is a device that applies a fluid to a surface to be applied. The fluid in this embodiment is, for example, a thermally conductive material T. The thermally conductive material T may be, for example, thermal grease, a thermal adhesive, a thermal gap filler, a liquid metal, or the like. Note that the fluid of the present invention is not limited to the thermally conductive material T. The fluid of the present invention includes paint, adhesive, and the like.

[0014] The surface to be coated in this embodiment is the surface S of a battery case of an electric vehicle. However, the surface to be coated in the present invention is not limited to the surface S of a battery case of an electric vehicle. It may also be a case that houses other devices of the electric vehicle.

[0015] The surface S of the battery case may not be a uniform plane, but may have irregularities. In this case, the thermal conductive material T will be crushed after application, so it is necessary to apply the thermal conductive material T to a uniform height. However, if the surface S of the battery case is a flat surface with irregularities, it is necessary to apply an excessively thick layer of thermal conductive material T from the beginning, or to apply even more thermal conductive material T after crushing the thermal conductive material T. As a result, the material cost of the thermal conductive material T increases.

[0016] As will be described in detail later, the fluid application device 10 allows the thermally conductive material T to be applied at a uniform height to the surface S of the battery case, which is not a uniform flat surface. This eliminates the need to apply an excessively thick layer of thermally conductive material T from the beginning, or to apply an additional layer of thermally conductive material T after crushing the thermally conductive material T. As a result, the material cost of the thermally conductive material T can be reduced.

[0017] The fluid application device 10 is configured to be movable by a moving device (not shown). The moving device preferably moves the fluid application device 10 in at least three-dimensional translation directions. When the fluid application device 10 applies the thermally conductive material T to the surface S of the battery case, the fluid application device 10 is moved relative to the battery case by the moving device. Note that the battery case may also move relative to the fluid application device 10.

[0018] In the following description of the fluid application device 10, the direction in which the surface S moves relative to the fluid application device 10 may be referred to as the movement direction, and the direction perpendicular to the movement direction and the vertical direction (up and down direction) may be referred to as the width direction. Also, in the movement direction, the side from which the thermally conductive material T is discharged may be referred to as the tip side, and the side opposite the tip side may be referred to as the base side.

[0019] The fluid application device 10 includes a nozzle 11 having an outlet 11A for discharging the thermally conductive material T, and a guide portion for guiding the thermally conductive material T discharged from the outlet 11A onto the surface S of the battery case. The nozzle 11 discharges the thermally conductive material T from the outlet 11A. The nozzle 11 is filled with the thermally conductive material T that has been pressure-fed by a pressure-fed device (not shown). The outlet 11A is formed in the shape of a slit along the width direction.

[0020] The guide portion is a member that guides the thermally conductive material T discharged from the outlet 11A of the nozzle 11 to the surface S of the battery case. The guide portion allows the thermally conductive material T discharged from the outlet 11A of the nozzle 11 to be smoothly guided to the surface S of the battery case. The guide portion includes a fixed guide plate 12 that extends from the upper end of the outlet 11A and a movable guide plate 13 that extends from the lower end of the outlet 11A.

[0021] The fixed guide plate 12 is a member that comes into contact with the upper surface of the thermally conductive material T discharged from the discharge port 11A of the nozzle 11, and guides the thermally conductive material T to the surface S of the battery case. The fixed guide plate 12 is formed in a flat plate shape and extends along the movement direction. The length of the fixed guide plate 12 in the movement direction is formed to be longer than that of the movable guide plate 13. It is preferable that the length of the fixed guide plate 12 in the width direction is formed to be approximately the same as the length of the discharge port 11A in the width direction. Note that in FIG. 1, the fixed guide plate 12 is shown as a see-through view to make the movable guide plate 13 easier to understand.

[0022] The movable guide plate 13 is a member that comes into contact with the lower surface of the thermally conductive material T discharged from the discharge port 11A of the nozzle 11, and guides the thermally conductive material T to the surface S of the battery case. The width of the movable guide plate 13 is preferably formed to be approximately the same as the width of the discharge port 11A.

[0023] The movable guide plate 13, which will be described in detail later, moves to follow the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case, and can adjust the amount of thermally conductive material T applied in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. This allows the thermally conductive material T to be applied at a uniform height to the surface S of the battery case, which is not a uniform flat surface.

[0024] The movable guide plate 13 is composed of a plurality of movable guide pieces 14 arranged in the width direction. The number of movable guide pieces 14 and their width length are not particularly limited. It is preferable that the number of movable guide pieces 14 is large and the width length of the movable guide pieces 14 is short. Each movable guide piece 14 has a base end piece 14A extending from the lower end of the discharge port 11A and a movable piece 14B supported so as to be rotatable relative to the base end piece 14A.

[0025] The base end piece 14A extends horizontally (in the direction of movement) from the lower end of the discharge port 11 A. A movable piece 14B, which will be described later, is rotatably supported at the tip of the base end piece 14A.

[0026] As described above, the movable piece 14B is rotatably supported at the tip end of the base end piece 14A. As a result, the gravity of the movable piece 14B causes the movable piece 14B to rotate so that the tip end of the movable piece 14B faces downward while being supported by the base end piece 14A. As a result, the tip end of the movable piece 14B comes into contact with the surface S of the battery case. When the movable piece 14B moves relative to the surface S of the battery case, the tip end of the movable piece 14B moves in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. In other words, the position of the bottom end of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case changes in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case.

[0027] With the above configuration, the tip of each of the movable pieces 14B aligned along the width direction comes into contact with the surface S of the battery case. When the fluid application device 10 moves relative to the surface S of the battery case, the tip of each of the movable pieces 14B aligned along the width direction moves in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case.

[0028] In other words, the position of the lower end of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case in the width direction changes in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. On the other hand, the upper end of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case in the width direction is guided by the fixed guide plate 12 and therefore remains at a constant position in the up-down direction.

[0029] This allows the amount of thermally conductive material T to be adjusted according to the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. Also, the surface to which the thermally conductive material T is applied can be made to a constant height. As a result, the thermally conductive material T can be applied at a uniform height to the surface S of the battery case, which is not a uniform flat surface.

[0030] The movable piece 14B is preferably made of an elastic material, which prevents the tip of the movable piece 14B from damaging the surface S of the battery case even if the tip of the movable piece 14B comes into contact with the surface S of the battery case.

[0031] The movable piece 14B may be biased by a coil spring or the like at the tip of the base piece 14A so that the tip of the movable piece 14B faces downward. This causes the tip of the movable piece 14B to come into contact with the surface S of the battery case. When the movable piece 14B moves relative to the surface S of the battery case, the movable piece 14B moves along the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case.

[0032] [Other embodiments] A fluid application device 20 as another example of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0033] The fluid application device 20 is configured to be movable by a moving device (not shown). The moving device preferably moves the fluid application device 20 in at least three-dimensional translation directions. When the thermally conductive material T is applied to the surface S of the battery case by the fluid application device 10, the fluid application device 20 is moved relative to the battery case by the moving device. Note that the battery case may also move relative to the fluid application device 20.

[0034] The fluid application device 20 includes a nozzle 21 having a discharge port 21A for discharging the thermally conductive material T, and a guide portion for guiding the thermally conductive material T to the surface S. The nozzle 21 discharges the thermally conductive material T from the discharge port 21A. The nozzle 21 is filled with the thermally conductive material T that is pressure-fed by a pressure-fed device (not shown). The discharge port 21A is formed in the shape of a slit along the width direction.

[0035] The guide portion is a member that guides the thermally conductive material T discharged from the outlet 21A of the nozzle 21 to the surface S of the battery case. The guide portion allows the thermally conductive material T discharged from the outlet 21A of the nozzle 21 to be smoothly guided to the surface S of the battery case. The guide portion includes a fixed guide portion 22 that extends from the front end of the outlet 21A and a movable guide portion 23 that extends from the rear end of the outlet 21A.

[0036] The flow path formed by the fixed guide portion 22 and the movable guide portion 23 is formed in an arc shape in a cross section perpendicular to the width direction, thereby making it possible to reduce pressure loss when guiding the thermally conductive material T.

[0037] The fixed guide part 22 is a member that comes into contact with the upper surface of the thermally conductive material T discharged from the discharge port 21A of the nozzle 21, and guides the thermally conductive material T to the surface S of the battery case. The fixed guide part 22 extends from below along the movement direction. It is preferable that the width of the fixed guide part 22 is formed to be approximately the same as the width of the discharge port 21A.

[0038] The movable guide part 23 is a member that comes into contact with the lower surface of the thermally conductive material T discharged from the discharge port 21A of the nozzle 21, and guides the thermally conductive material T to the surface S of the battery case. The movable guide part 23 extends from below along the movement direction. The width of the movable guide part 23 is preferably formed to be approximately the same as the width of the discharge port 21A.

[0039] The movable guide 23, which will be described in detail later, moves to follow the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case, and can adjust the amount of thermally conductive material T applied in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. This allows the thermally conductive material T to be applied at a uniform height to the surface S of the battery case, which is not a uniform flat surface.

[0040] The movable guide portion 23 has a main body 23A, a plurality of movable pieces 23B arranged in the width direction, and a protective sheet 23C that protects the upper surfaces of the plurality of movable pieces 23B.

[0041] The movable piece 23B is formed in a teardrop shape in a cross section perpendicular to the width direction. This reduces pressure loss when discharging the thermally conductive material T. The base end of the movable piece 23B in the movement direction is rotatably supported by the tip end of the main body 23A in the movement direction. As a result, the gravity of the movable piece 23B causes the tip of the movable piece 23B to rotate downward while being supported by the main body 23A. As a result, the tip of the movable piece 23B comes into contact with the surface S of the battery case.

[0042] When the movable piece 23B moves relative to the surface S of the battery case, the tip of the movable piece 23B moves, following the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. In other words, the position of the lower end of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case changes, following the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case.

[0043] The protective sheet 23C is disposed on the upper surfaces of the plurality of movable pieces 23B. The protective sheet 23C is made of an elastic material. For example, the tip end and base end of the protective sheet 23C in the movement direction are adhered to the upper surfaces of the respective movable pieces 23B.

[0044] With the above configuration, the tip of each of the movable pieces 23B aligned along the width direction comes into contact with the surface S of the battery case. When the fluid application device 20 moves relative to the surface S of the battery case, the tip of each of the movable pieces 23B aligned along the width direction moves in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. Furthermore, the protective sheet 23C also moves in accordance with the movement of the tip of each of the movable pieces 23B aligned along the width direction.

[0045] In other words, the lower end position (the tips of the movable piece 23B and the protective sheet 23C) of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case in the width direction changes in accordance with the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. On the other hand, the upper end position of the thermally conductive material T dispensed onto the surface S of the battery case in the width direction is guided by the fixed guide portion 22 and is therefore constant in the vertical direction.

[0046] This allows the amount of thermally conductive material T to be adjusted according to the unevenness of the surface S of the battery case. Also, the surface to which the thermally conductive material T is applied can be made to a constant height. As a result, the thermally conductive material T can be applied at a uniform height to the surface S of the battery case, which is not a uniform flat surface.

[0047] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment and its modifications, and various changes and modifications are possible within the scope of the claims of this application. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 10 fluid application device, 11 nozzle, 11A discharge port, 12 fixed guide plate, 13 movable guide plate, 14 movable guide piece, 14A base end piece, 14B movable piece, 20 fluid application device, 21 nozzle, 21A discharge port, 22 fixed guide part, 23 movable guide part, 23A main body, 23B movable piece, 23C protective sheet, S surface (surface to be applied), T thermal conductive material (fluid)

Claims

[Claim 1] A fluid application device that applies a fluid to a surface to be applied that is not at least a uniform flat surface, a nozzle having a slit-shaped outlet for discharging the fluid, and a guide portion for guiding the fluid discharged from the outlet to the surface to be coated, the guide portion includes a fixed guide plate extending from an upper end of the discharge port and a movable guide plate extending from a lower end of the discharge port, the movable guide plate is made up of a plurality of movable guide pieces arranged along the longitudinal direction of the discharge port, the movable guide piece has a base end piece extending from a lower end of the discharge port and a movable piece supported rotatably relative to the base end piece, The tip of the movable piece is in contact with the surface to be coated. Fluid application device.

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