Battery replacement stand and battery replacement method

Abstract

To provide a battery replacement table and a battery replacement method for efficiently taking out and replacing a target battery among a plurality of batteries stacked in a mutually separated state.SOLUTION: The battery replacement stand is a battery replacement stand in which a plurality of batteries are taken out from a power supply device for replacement and temporarily housed in a state where the batteries are stacked apart from each other, and includes a mounting part on which each of the batteries is mounted, and an adjustment part that adjusts a distance between mounting parts adjacent to each other in a height direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a battery exchange stand and a battery exchange method. [Background technology]

[0002] One possible use for reusing automotive batteries is as a stationary power source. When reusing automotive batteries to create a stationary power source with high power capacity, the housing of the stationary power source needs to house multiple automotive batteries at a high density. However, as the density of the automotive batteries increases, the amount of space available within the housing of the stationary power source decreases. For this reason, one method is to remove multiple installed automotive batteries from the housing at once and then replace each individual battery.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a battery panel in which a battery module that houses a battery has support protrusions on both ends of one opposing surface, and the support protrusions fit into cutouts in the frame to secure the battery module. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-161464 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The battery panel described in Patent Document 1 can suppress an increase in the number of parts even in a configuration in which batteries are arranged in multiple tiers, and minimize the space used for structural mechanisms. However, it does not disclose a method for simultaneously replacing multiple batteries arranged at high density. Therefore, the battery panel described in Patent Document 1 cannot efficiently replace the target battery among the multiple removed batteries when simultaneously replacing multiple batteries.

[0006] In consideration of the above-mentioned problems, the present disclosure provides a battery replacement stand and a battery replacement method that temporarily store a target battery from among multiple batteries that are stacked and spaced apart from each other so that the target battery can be efficiently removed and replaced. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A battery exchange stand according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a battery exchange stand that is removed from a power supply device for replacement and temporarily stored in a state in which multiple batteries are stacked and spaced apart from each other, and is equipped with a mounting section for mounting each battery and an adjustment section for adjusting the distance between adjacent mounting sections in the vertical direction.

[0008] In the battery exchange stand, the battery may be an in-vehicle battery.

[0009] In the above-mentioned battery exchange stand, the power supply device may have an outlet on the front side, and the batteries may be installed in the power supply device with portions of the batteries alternately shifted toward the front side and toward the rear side opposite the front side.

[0010] In the battery exchange stand, at least one of the plurality of batteries may have a different thickness at at least one end, and may interfere with at least one of the adjacent batteries or the housing of the power supply device when removed from the power supply device.

[0011] A battery replacement method according to one aspect of the present disclosure involves removing multiple batteries from a power supply device in a stacked state with a space between them onto a battery replacement stand, widening the distance between the mounting sections of the battery replacement stand on which each battery is mounted, and removing and replacing the batteries through the widened gap between the mounting sections. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a battery replacement stand and a battery replacement method that temporarily store a target battery from among a plurality of batteries stacked and spaced apart from each other so that the target battery can be efficiently removed and replaced. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a first schematic diagram of a battery replacement method according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a battery exchange stand according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a transition diagram of an adjustment unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 4 is a second schematic diagram of the battery replacement method according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a process diagram of the battery replacement method according to the first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in the embodiments are necessarily essential means for solving the problems. For clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings have been omitted and simplified as appropriate. In each drawing, the same elements are assigned the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted as necessary.

[0015] <First Embodiment> A first embodiment according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a power supply device 1 according to the first embodiment. The power supply device 1 has a battery-mounted housing 10 equipped with a plurality of batteries 11, and functions as a stationary power supply. The power supply device 1 is used, for example, as a regulator for unstable power supply or an emergency backup power supply. The power supply device 1 mainly includes a battery-mounted housing 10, batteries 11, and a cooling unit 15. In this disclosure, the left-right direction of the power supply device 1 is defined as the X direction (not shown), the height direction as the Y direction, and the depth direction as the Z direction.

[0016] The battery mounting housing 10 is a housing for mounting a battery 11. The battery mounting housing 10 has multiple mounting spaces for mounting batteries. Each of the multiple mounting spaces mounts a battery 11. The battery mounting housing 10 also has an outlet 101 for the battery 11 on its front side. The mounting spaces are formed by alternately stacking the batteries on the front side (+Z direction) closer to the outlet 101 and on the back side (-Z direction) farther from the outlet 101. Therefore, the battery 11 can be removed by moving it in the direction of the outlet 101 on the front side, as shown by the white arrow in Figure 1. Note that due to site area restrictions, etc., it is not possible to install the outlet 101 on the back side of the battery mounting housing 10.

[0017] The battery mounting housing 10 has multiple mounting spaces. In FIG. 1, the battery mounting housing 10 has five mounting spaces on the front side and four mounting spaces on the back side. Here, the lowest mounting space is formed on the front side, and above that, mounting spaces are formed by alternately stacking the rear side and the front side. In FIG. 1, there are nine mounting spaces, and the topmost one is formed on the front side.

[0018] A plurality of batteries 11 are mounted in the power supply device 1 and used as a power source. The batteries 11 are, for example, vehicle batteries. Here, the vehicle batteries may be recycled batteries. The batteries 11 include a front-side battery 12 and a rear-side battery 13. The front-side battery 12 is mounted in a mounting space on the front side of the battery mounting housing 10. The rear-side battery 13 is mounted in a mounting space on the rear side of the battery mounting housing 10. The front-side battery 12 and the rear-side battery 13 are batteries of the same type. The front-side battery 12 and the rear-side battery 13 may be batteries of different types.

[0019] The battery 11 has an interference part 111. When the rear-side battery 13 is removed from the removal opening 101 of the battery-mounted housing 10, the interference part 111 interferes with the front-side battery 12 or the battery-mounted housing 10. Therefore, in related art, when removing the rear-side battery 13, it is necessary to first remove the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12.

[0020] The interference portion 111 is, for example, a portion where the thickness increases at the end of the battery 11, as shown in FIG. 1 . To improve the mounting density of the batteries 11, the battery mounting housing 10 stacks the mounting space so that the interference portion 111 is out of the overlapping portion of the batteries 11. Therefore, within the battery mounting housing 10, the batteries 11 are mounted so that the interference portion 111 of the front-side battery 12 and the back-side battery 13 protrudes from the overlapping portion toward the front and back sides. Furthermore, most of the front-side battery 12 overlaps most of the back-side battery 13. This allows the installation area of ​​the battery mounting housing 10 to be reduced even when a large number of batteries 11 are mounted therein.

[0021] In this case, to improve the mounting density, the vertical separation distance between the overlapping batteries 11 is shorter than the thickness increase of the interference portion 111. Therefore, when removing the rear-side battery 13 from the removal port 101, it interferes with the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12. Specifically, the rear-side battery 13 interferes with the interference portion 111 of the front-side battery 12 adjacent below it. Furthermore, the interference portion 111 of the rear-side battery 13 interferes with the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12. Therefore, in related art, when removing a rear-side battery 13, it is necessary to first remove the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12.

[0022] Even if the batteries 11 do not have interfering portions 111, it is difficult to remove the rear-side battery 13 without removing the front-side battery 12 in a battery-mounted housing 10 with a high packing density. Similarly, even if the height separation distance between overlapping batteries 11 is longer than the thickness increase of the interfering portions 111, it is difficult to remove the rear-side battery 13 without removing the front-side battery 12 in a battery-mounted housing 10 with a high packing density. In related art, to reduce the possibility of damage due to interference, it is required to first remove the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12 before removing the rear-side battery 13.

[0023] The cooling unit 15 manages the temperature of the power supply device 1. More specifically, the cooling unit 15 suppresses a rise in the temperature of the battery 11. Furthermore, when the temperature of the battery 11 is low, the cooling unit 15 heats it.

[0024] When replacing the rear-side battery 13 of the power supply unit 1, the battery replacement method of removing the vertically adjacent front-side battery 12 and then removing the rear-side battery 13 involves many steps and is not efficient. Therefore, the battery replacement method according to the first embodiment includes the step of removing the rear-side battery 13 and the front-side battery 12 in front of it together into the battery replacement stand 2. By replacing the battery 11 to be replaced from the battery replacement stand 2, the step of removing each of the multiple batteries 11 from the power supply unit 1 is eliminated.

[0025] Figure 2 is a first overview diagram of the battery replacement method according to the first embodiment. Figure 2 shows how the rear-side battery 13 and the front-side battery 12 in front of it are removed together from the power supply device 1 into the battery replacement stand 2. In Figure 2, the bottom three batteries 11, including the bottom front-side battery 12 of the power supply device 1, are removed from the power supply device 1 for replacement in a stacked state with a space between them, and are temporarily stored in the battery replacement stand 2. The battery replacement method according to this embodiment uses the battery replacement stand 2 and a work device 30.

[0026] 3 is a configuration diagram of the battery exchange stand 2 according to the first embodiment. The battery exchange stand 2 accommodates multiple batteries 11 removed from the power supply device 1, stacked and spaced apart from each other. The battery exchange stand 2 includes a mounting section 21 and an adjustment section 22. By temporarily accommodating multiple batteries 11 in the battery exchange stand 2, it is possible to omit the step of individually moving the front-side batteries 12 when removing the rear-side batteries 13.

[0027] The mounting units 21 mount each of the batteries 11 removed from the power supply device 1. The mounting units 21 can be individually removed from the battery exchange stand 2 and moved. The mounting units 21 are also called child carts. The adjustment units 22 adjust the distance between adjacent mounting units 21 in the height direction (+Y direction). The adjustment units are, for example, lift-up bolts. The adjustment units may also be hydraulic jacks, motors, etc.

[0028] The battery exchange stand 2 has two configurations: a first configuration before the height distance is adjusted, and a second configuration after the height distance is adjusted. The battery exchange stand 2 may transition between the two configurations in stages and be used in an intermediate configuration.

[0029] The left side of Figure 3 shows a first form of the battery exchange stand 2. The first form is a form for storing multiple batteries 11 removed from the power supply device 1 in a stacked state with a space between each battery. In the first form, the spacing in the height direction (+Y direction) of the mounting sections 21 is set to a first distance L1. The battery exchange stand 2 in the first form stores multiple batteries 11 at a high mounting density. Note that in Figure 3, the adjustment section 22 is minimized in the battery exchange stand 2 of the first form, and is therefore shown as a line.

[0030] The first distance L1 is shorter than the thickness of the battery 11, including the interference portion 111. Therefore, in the battery exchange stand 2 of the first embodiment, when the rear-side battery 13 is removed to the front side, the rear-side battery 13 interferes with the front-side battery 12.

[0031] The right side of Figure 3 shows the second configuration of the battery exchange stand 2. The second configuration is for individually removing batteries 11 to be replaced from the battery exchange stand 2. In the second configuration, the spacing between the mounting sections 21 in the height direction (+Y direction) is set to a second distance L2. The second distance L2 is longer than the first distance L1. Therefore, the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration has a lower battery 11 mounting density than the first configuration. Note that in Figure 3, in the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration, the adjustment section 22 extends in the height direction (+Y direction) and is shown as a shaded area.

[0032] In the second embodiment, the vertical spacing between the mounting sections 21 does not match the vertical spacing between the batteries 11 arranged inside the power supply device 1. Therefore, the battery exchange stand 2 in the second embodiment cannot accommodate multiple batteries 11 removed from the power supply device 1 in a stacked state with the batteries spaced apart from each other. Furthermore, because the lower part of the battery exchange stand 2 and the insertion section 31 of the work device 30 interfere with the ground, it is not possible to use the battery exchange stand 2 in the second embodiment to individually remove multiple batteries 11 from the power supply device 1. The insertion section 31 of the work device 30 will be described in detail later.

[0033] The second distance L2 is longer than the thickness of the battery 11, including the interference portion 111. Therefore, in the second embodiment of the battery exchange stand 2, when the rear-side battery 13 is removed to the front side, the rear-side battery 13 does not interfere with the front-side battery 12. This allows the rear-side battery 13 to be removed and replaced between the adjusted mounting portions 21. This allows for efficient battery exchange work.

[0034] Referring again to FIG. 2, the work equipment 30 is used for battery replacement work. The work equipment 30 is, for example, a forklift. The work equipment 30 has an insertion part 31 that is inserted into the lower part of the battery replacement table 2 or the mounting part 21 to lift it up. The insertion part 31 is, for example, the claws of a forklift. The insertion part 31 may also be the claws of a forklift equipped with an extension tool called a sheath fork.

[0035] FIG. 4 is a transition diagram of the adjustment unit 22 in embodiment 1. FIG. 4 shows the transition of the behavior of the adjustment unit 22 from the front side. Here, the adjustment unit 22 is a lift-up bolt. Note that FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the adjustment unit 22 at the right end of the battery exchange stand 2. Therefore, only the right end portions of the front-side battery 12 and the rear-side battery 13 are shown. Note that in FIG. 4, the bottom-most front-side battery 12 and the rear-side battery 13 adjacent to that front-side battery 12 are mounted on the mounting section 21 via auxiliary members 112. The auxiliary members 112 are used to stably mount the battery 11. The auxiliary members 112 are also called brackets. The battery 11 may be mounted on the mounting section 21 without using the auxiliary members 112.

[0036] FIG. 4(a) shows the adjustment unit 22 in the first configuration of the battery exchange stand 2. In FIG. 4(a), the adjustment unit 22 does not adjust the vertical (+Y) spacing of the mounting unit 21. The distance between the top of the front-side battery 12 and the bottom of the mounting unit 21 is the third distance L3 before adjustment. Here, the third distance L3 is shorter than the thickness Lt of the insertion unit 31. Therefore, due to its thickness, the insertion unit 31 cannot be inserted between the battery 11 and the mounting unit 21 of the battery exchange stand 2 in the first configuration. In other words, the work device 30 interferes with the adjacent batteries 11 above and below, making it impossible to remove only the desired battery 11.

[0037] Figure 4(b) shows the state of the adjustment section 22 in the second configuration of the battery exchange stand 2. In Figure 4(b), the adjustment section 22 adjusts the spacing in the height direction (+Y direction) of the mounting section 21 by being inserted. Therefore, the distance between the upper end of the front-side battery 12 and the lower end of the mounting section 21 increases to a fourth distance L4 after adjustment. Here, the fourth distance L4 is longer than the thickness Lt of the insertion section 31.

[0038] 4(c) shows the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration with the insertion portion 31 inserted for battery replacement. The adjustment portion 22 adjusts the height of the mounting portion 21 to place the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration, allowing the work device 30 to insert the insertion portion 31, which has a thickness Lt, between the mounting portion 21 and the front-side battery 12 mounted on the lower level. This allows the work device 30 to remove the mounting portion 21 and the back-side battery 13 mounted on that mounting portion 21 from the front.

[0039] FIG. 5 is a second schematic diagram of the battery replacement method according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 5, the work device 30 removes the rear-side battery 13 mounted on the mounting section 21 from the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration, where the adjustment section 22 has adjusted the height of the mounting section 21. At this time, the front-side battery 12 remains mounted on the battery exchange stand 2. In other words, by changing the battery exchange stand 2 to the second configuration, the work device 30 can remove and replace the rear-side battery 13 from the front side (+Z direction). This eliminates the need to remove the front-side battery 12 when removing the rear-side battery 13. Furthermore, it is not necessary to move the work device 30 toward the rear side of the battery exchange stand 2 (-Z direction) when removing the rear-side battery 13. This allows the worker to efficiently replace the rear-side battery 13.

[0040] Furthermore, the insertion section 31 of the work device 30 can be inserted between the rear battery 13 and the front battery 12 mounted on the top of the battery exchange stand 2 in the second form. This allows the worker to efficiently replace the front battery 12 mounted on the top of the battery exchange stand 2.

[0041] As described above, by using the battery exchange stand 2, the worker can efficiently exchange the target battery 11 among the plurality of batteries 11.

[0042] 6 is a process diagram of the battery replacement method according to embodiment 1. The battery replacement method according to embodiment 1 includes steps S11 to S13.

[0043] In step S11, the rear-side battery 13 and the front-side battery 12 in front of it are removed together into the battery exchange stand 2. In this way, the multiple batteries 11 are removed from the power supply device 1 in a stacked state with a space between them for replacement, and are temporarily stored in the battery exchange stand 2.

[0044] In step S12, the battery exchange stand 2 increases the distance between the mounting portions 21 that mount the batteries 11. This allows the plug-in portion 31 of the work tool 30 to be inserted between the mounting portion 21 and the adjacent battery 11 below.

[0045] In step S13, the work device 30 removes and replaces the battery 11 to be replaced from the battery exchange stand 2. Upon completion of step S13, the flow of the battery replacement method ends.

[0046] As described above, the steps of the battery replacement method including steps S11 to S13 allow the worker to replace only the target battery 11 from the removed batteries 11 when removing multiple batteries 11 aligned vertically from the power supply device 1 of this embodiment at once. This allows the worker to efficiently replace the target battery 11 from the multiple batteries 11.

[0047] The plurality of batteries 11 removed from the battery exchange stand 2, including the replaced battery 11, can be returned to the power supply device 1 by performing the steps from step S11 to step S13 in reverse.

[0048] That is, the work device 30 stores the mounting section 21 with the replaced battery 11 mounted in the battery exchange stand 2 in the second configuration. Next, the adjustment section 22 is driven to transition the battery exchange stand 2 from the second configuration to the first configuration. Finally, the work device 30 stores the removed batteries 11, including the replaced battery 11, from the battery exchange stand 2 in the first configuration into the power supply device 1. At this time, the multiple batteries 11 are stored in the power supply device 1 in a stacked state with each battery 11 spaced apart from one another. This allows the worker to efficiently replace the battery 11 to be replaced.

[0049] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications can be made as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the adjustment unit 22 of the battery exchange stand 2 may be provided with a control unit and automatically adjust the spacing between the mounting units 21 in the height direction (+Y direction). The adjustment unit 22 of the battery exchange stand 2 may also adjust the spacing between the mounting units 21 in the height direction (+Y direction) individually. The adjustment unit 22 of the battery exchange stand 2 may also adjust the spacing between the mounting units 21 in the height direction (+Y direction) for multiple mounting units 21 in a coordinated manner. The adjustment unit 22 may also be provided between at least one mounting unit 21. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 1 Power supply 10 Battery housing 101 Outlet 11 Batteries 111 Interference part 112 Auxiliary parts 12 Front battery 13 Rear battery 15 Cooling unit 2 Battery change stand 21 Mounting section 22 Adjustment part 30 Work equipment 31 Insertion part L1 First distance L2 Second distance L3 Third distance L4 Fourth distance Lt thickness S11, S12, S13 steps

Claims

1. A battery exchange stand in which a plurality of batteries are stacked and spaced apart from one another and is removed from a power supply device for replacement and temporarily stored therein, a mounting portion for mounting each of the batteries; an adjustment unit that adjusts the distance between the mounting units that are adjacent in the height direction; A battery change station equipped with

2. The battery exchange stand according to claim 1 , wherein the battery is an in-vehicle battery.

3. The power supply device has an outlet on the front surface, The battery is installed in the power supply device such that a portion of the battery is alternately shifted toward the front surface and a portion of the battery is shifted toward a rear surface opposite the front surface.

3. The battery exchange stand according to claim 1 or 2.

4. At least one of the plurality of batteries The thickness of at least one end is different, When removed from the power supply device, the battery interferes with at least one of the adjacent batteries or the housing of the power supply device.

3. The battery exchange stand according to claim 1 or 2.

5. Remove the plurality of batteries from the power supply device in a stacked state with a space between each battery onto the battery exchange stand; widening the distance between the mounting portions of the battery exchange table on which the batteries are mounted; The battery is removed from the space between the mounting parts and replaced. How to replace batteries.

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