Laser welding apparatus and its operating method

Abstract

A laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein includes a laser irradiator capable of laser welding electrode leads to electrode tabs of an electrode assembly, a mask jig capable of fixing the electrode tabs and electrode leads, a communication circuit capable of communicating with a welding control device, and a processor, wherein the processor can receive control instructions from the welding control device using the communication circuit, and if the control instructions are welding control instructions, it can perform a laser welding process of laser welding the electrode leads to the electrode tabs using the laser irradiator and the mask jig, and if the control instructions are imaging control instructions, it can perform an image capture process of capturing the mask jig using the laser irradiator and the mask jig.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention claims the benefit of priority based on Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0130927 filed on September 27, 2023, and all the contents disclosed in the document of the Korean Patent Application are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0002] The embodiments disclosed in this document relate to a laser welding apparatus and an operating method thereof.

Background Art

[0003] Recently, research and development on secondary batteries have been actively conducted. Here, a secondary battery is a rechargeable battery, including both conventional Ni / Cd batteries, Ni / MH batteries, etc., and recent lithium-ion batteries. Among secondary batteries, lithium-ion batteries have the advantage of much higher energy density compared to conventional Ni / Cd batteries, Ni / MH batteries, etc. In addition, lithium-ion batteries can be manufactured in a small and lightweight form, are used as power sources for mobile devices, and recently, their usage range has expanded as power sources for electric vehicles and they have attracted attention as next-generation energy storage media.

[0004] Secondary batteries can be classified into cylindrical batteries or prismatic batteries in which an electrode assembly is built into a cylindrical or prismatic metal can according to the shape of the battery case, and pouch-type batteries in which the electrode assembly is built into a pouch of an aluminum laminate sheet.

[0005] The electrode assembly of each battery cell can include a plurality of electrodes laminated with a separator interposed therebetween. The manufacturing process of the corresponding secondary battery can include a welding process.

[0006] The welding process can be performed using a laser welding apparatus. The laser welding apparatus may use a mask fixture to hold the workpiece in place. Mask fixtures are commonly used in the laser welding process. In a laser welding apparatus, a mask fixture may refer to a pad or lug used to hold the workpiece in place while it is being laser-welded. A mask fixture used for laser welding may be provided with at least one aperture through which the laser beam can be aimed at the workpiece. Optionally, the mask fixture may include slits or other holes for a protective gas such as nitrogen.

[0007] The aforementioned laser welding apparatus melts the workpiece with a laser while the mask jig is tightly fixed to the workpiece. However, spatter generated during the laser welding process can contaminate the mask jig, potentially causing intermittent quality degradation (e.g., tensile strength, appearance, etc.). Furthermore, conventional methods only capture real-time images of a portion of the welding area (e.g., 1 / 3 of the entire level), and do not separately collect image data related to the laser welding mask jig. [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0008] The embodiments disclosed in this document provide a laser welding apparatus and a method of operation thereof that can perform both a laser welding process of laser welding electrode leads to electrode tabs and an image capture process of photographing a mask jig.

[0009] The technical problems of the embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to those mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] A laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein includes a laser irradiator capable of laser welding electrode leads to electrode tabs of an electrode assembly, a mask jig capable of fixing the electrode tabs and electrode leads, a communication circuit capable of communicating with a welding control device, and a processor. The processor uses the communication circuit to receive control instructions from the welding control device, and if the control instructions are welding control instructions, it can perform a laser welding process using the laser irradiator and the mask jig to laser weld the electrode leads to the electrode tabs, and if the control instructions are imaging control instructions, it can perform an image imaging process using the laser irradiator and the mask jig to photograph the mask jig.

[0011] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein, the laser irradiator may include a scanner, a laser welding module that performs laser welding using the scanner during the laser welding process, and an image acquisition module that photographs the mask jig using the scanner during the image acquisition process.

[0012] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed in this document, the processor can use the image acquisition module to capture multiple imaging areas and acquire multiple sub-images, and combine at least a portion of the multiple sub-images to acquire an analysis image.

[0013] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein, the analysis image may be an image of the region including the opening of the mask jig.

[0014] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed in this document, the imaging control instruction may be an instruction to acquire the analysis image at set intervals.

[0015] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed in this document, the image capture control instruction may be an instruction to acquire an image of a set brightness.

[0016] In a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein, the processor can transmit the image acquired by the image acquisition process to the welding control device using the communication circuit.

[0017] A method for operating a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein may include: receiving a control instruction from a welding control device; performing a laser welding process in which electrode leads are laser-welded to electrode tabs of an electrode assembly if the control instruction is a welding control instruction; and performing an image capture process in which an image capture of a mask jig capable of fixing the electrode tabs and electrode leads is captured if the control instruction is an image capture control instruction.

[0018] In a method of operating a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed herein, the laser welding apparatus includes a laser irradiator capable of laser welding the electrode lead to the electrode tab and a mask jig, wherein the laser irradiator may include a scanner, a laser welding module that performs laser welding using the scanner during the laser welding process, and an image acquisition module that photographs the mask jig using the scanner during the image acquisition process.

[0019] In the operation method of a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment disclosed in this document, the operation of the image acquisition step may include an operation of acquiring multiple sub-images by capturing multiple imaging areas, and an operation of acquiring an analysis image by combining at least a portion of the multiple sub-images.

[0020] In the operation method of the laser welding apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed in this document, the analysis image can be an image of a region including the opening of the mask jig.

[0021] In the operation method of the laser welding apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed in this document, the imaging control instruction can be an instruction to acquire the analysis image at a set period.

[0022] In the operation method of the laser welding apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed in this document, the imaging control instruction can be an instruction to acquire an image with a set brightness.

[0023] The operation method of the laser welding apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed in this document can further include an operation of transmitting the image acquired in the image capturing step to the welding control apparatus.

Advantages of the Invention

[0024] According to the embodiment disclosed in this document, image data of the mask jig can be acquired so as to be able to quantitatively analyze the level of spatter accumulating on the mask jig of the laser welding apparatus.

[0025] According to the embodiment disclosed in this document, by adjusting the brightness, size, collection period, etc. of the mask jig image data, the acquisition and storage efficiency of the image data can be improved.

[0026] In addition, various effects directly or indirectly grasped by this document can be provided.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0027] [Figure 1] It is a diagram exemplarily showing the state of a mask jig according to an embodiment. [Figure 2]This is a block diagram of a welding control device and a laser welding device according to one embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view showing a laser irradiator according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure illustrates an example illustrating the laser welding process performed by a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] This figure illustrates an image capture process performed by a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment. [Figure 6] This is an operation flowchart of a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0028] Various embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this should be understood not as limiting the present invention to any particular embodiment, but rather as including various modifications, equivalents, and / or alternatives to the embodiments of the present invention.

[0029] The various embodiments and terminology used in this document should be understood not to limit the technical features described herein to any particular embodiment, but to include various modifications, equivalents, or substitutions of such embodiments. In relation to the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar or related components. The singular form of a noun corresponding to an item may include one or more of such items unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0030] In this document, each of the phrases such as “A or B,” “at least one of A and B,” “at least one of A or B,” “A, B or C,” “at least one of A, B and C,” and “at least one of A, B, or C” may include any one of the items listed together in the phrase, or any possible combination thereof. Terms such as “first,” “second,” “primary,” “second,” “A,” “B,” “(a),” or “(b)” may be used simply to distinguish one component from other components and, in particular, do not limit the component in any other respect (e.g., importance or order) unless otherwise stated.

[0031] In this document, when a component (e.g., component 1) is referred to as being "coupled," "joined," or "connected" to another component (e.g., component 2), with or without such terms, it means that the component can be connected to the other component directly (e.g., by wire), wirelessly, or via a third component.

[0032] According to various embodiments, each of the above-described components (e.g., a module or a program) may contain one or more objects, and some of the objects may be separated and placed in other components. According to various embodiments, one or more of the above-described components or operations may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Generally or additionally, multiple components (e.g., a module or a program) may be integrated into a single component. In such cases, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the multiple components in the same or similar way as they were performed by the components of the multiple components before the integration. According to various embodiments, operations performed by a module, program or other component may be performed sequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be performed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0033] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the state of a mask jig according to one embodiment.

[0034] Referring to Figure 1, the mask jig 30 may include a substrate 10 having through holes inside and a foreign matter layer 20 formed in the through holes.

[0035] The mask jig 30 is a fixing device for fixing electrode tabs and electrode leads during the process of laser welding electrode leads to electrode tabs provided on electrode assemblies during the packaging process of pouch-type cells, and as described above, it may include a substrate 10 having through holes inside. By including the substrate 10, the mask jig 30 allows the welding laser beam for the packaging process of pouch-type cells to be irradiated into the through holes. Here, the electrode assembly means an electrode cell in which a positive electrode, a separator, and a negative electrode are stacked, and the electrode tab may mean a member that connects the electrode slurry coated on the positive electrode or the negative electrode, respectively, to the electrode lead.

[0036] The foreign matter layer 20 may refer to a layer formed on the mask jig 30 during the packaging process of pouch-type cells when spatter generated by the electrode tabs and electrode leads during laser welding accumulates on the mask jig 30. Here, spatter can include fused foreign matter, where the molten material melts due to the heat generated during laser welding and adheres to the mask jig 30, and adherent foreign matter, where the molten material does not melt and adheres to the mask jig 30. Such a foreign matter layer 20 can contaminate the mask jig 30, potentially causing intermittent quality degradation (e.g., tensile strength, appearance, etc.). Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the foreign matter layer 20 accumulated on the mask jig 30 in advance and secure image data for the analysis area (e.g., through-hole area) so that measures can be taken to prevent quality degradation.

[0037] Figure 2 is a block diagram of a welding control device and a laser welding device according to one embodiment.

[0038] Referring to Figure 2, the laser welding apparatus 200 can be connected to the welding control device 100 by wire and / or wirelessly.

[0039] In one embodiment, the connection 201 between the laser welding apparatus 200 and the welding control device 100 can be a wired and / or wireless network communication connection. In one embodiment, the wired network can be based on LAN (local area network) communication or power line communication. In one embodiment, the wireless network can be based on a short-range communication network (e.g., Bluetooth®, WiFi (wireless fidelity), or IrDA (infrared data association)) or a long-range communication network (cellular network, 4G network, 5G network).

[0040] According to other embodiments, the connection 201 between the laser welding apparatus 200 and the welding control device 100 can be a connection by a communication method between the devices (e.g., bus, GPIO (general purpose input and output), SPI (Serial peripheral interface), or MIPI (mobile industry processor interface)).

[0041] According to one embodiment, the welding control device 100 can be a mobile device (e.g., a mobile phone, laptop computer, smartphone, smartpad) or a PC (personal computer). According to one embodiment, the welding control device 100 can transmit control instructions to the laser welding apparatus 200 via the connection 201. According to one embodiment, the control instructions may include welding control instructions that cause the laser welding apparatus 200 to perform a laser welding process and / or shooting control instructions that cause the laser welding apparatus 200 to photograph the mask fixture 240.

[0042] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 may include a communication circuit 210, a processor 220, a laser irradiator 230, and a mask jig 240.

[0043] According to one embodiment, the communication circuit 210 can establish a wired and / or wireless communication channel (e.g., connection 201) between the laser welding apparatus 200 and the welding control device 100, and can send and receive data with the welding control device 100 via the established communication channel. According to one embodiment, the communication circuit 210 can receive the control instructions from the welding control device 100. According to one embodiment, the communication circuit 210 can transmit an image acquired by the image acquisition process of the laser welding apparatus 200, which will be described later, to the welding control device 100.

[0044] According to one embodiment, the processor 220 may include a central processing unit, an application processor, a graphics processing unit, a neural network processing unit (NPU), an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor. According to one embodiment, the processor 220 may execute software stored in memory (not shown) to control at least one other component (e.g., hardware or software component) of the laser welding apparatus 200 connected to the processor 220.

[0045] According to one embodiment, the processor 220 can use the communication circuit 210 to respond to control instructions received from the welding control device 100 and perform a laser welding process and / or an image acquisition process.

[0046] According to one embodiment, the processor 220 can identify a control instruction and perform only one process at a time during a laser welding process or an image acquisition process. For example, if the control instruction is a welding control instruction, the processor 220 can perform a laser welding process in which electrode leads are laser-welded to electrode tabs using the laser irradiator 230, a mask fixture 240, and / or other components (e.g., a cell transport device). If the control instruction is an image acquisition control instruction, the processor 220 can perform an image acquisition process in which the mask fixture 240 is photographed using the laser irradiator 230, a mask fixture 240, and / or other components.

[0047] The configuration of the laser irradiator 230 included in the laser welding apparatus 200 and the laser welding apparatus 200 itself can be described below with reference to Figure 3. Furthermore, the operation of at least one component included in the laser irradiator 230 described below may be controlled by the processor 220.

[0048] Figure 3 is a perspective view showing a laser irradiator according to one embodiment.

[0049] Referring to Figure 3, the laser irradiator 230 may include a scanner 231, a lens 232, a laser welding module 233, an image acquisition module 234, and / or an illumination module 235.

[0050] According to one embodiment, the scanner 231 can irradiate an object with a laser conducted from the laser welding module 233 or transmit light reflected from the object to be photographed to the image acquisition module 234 using at least one internal mirror (not shown) and a lens 232. The at least one internal mirror (not shown) may be, for example, a galvanometer mirror. In this case, the scanner 231 can adjust the area irradiated with the welding laser or the imaging area in the X-axis direction and / or Y-axis direction by adjusting the angle of the at least one internal mirror (not shown).

[0051] According to one embodiment, the laser welding module 233 can perform laser welding on electrode tabs and electrode leads using a scanner 231 during the laser welding process.

[0052] According to one embodiment, the laser welding module 233 may include a laser fiber 233-1 that outputs a welding laser and a collimator 233-2 that diverges the welding laser output by the laser fiber 233-1 in a parallel state toward the scanner 231. The scanner 231 can irradiate the welding laser diverged from the laser welding module 233 onto the object to be welded (e.g., the joint between an electrode tab and an electrode lead).

[0053] According to one embodiment, the image acquisition module 234 can photograph a mask jig (e.g., the mask jig 240 in Figure 2) using the scanner 231 during the image acquisition process. For example, the image acquisition module 234 can photograph the object to be photographed (e.g., the mask jig 240 in Figure 2) by acquiring the light reflected from the object via the scanner 231.

[0054] According to one embodiment, the lighting module 235 can irradiate the object to be photographed with light during the image acquisition process. According to one embodiment, the lighting module 235 can adjust the brightness of the irradiated light so that an image of a set brightness is acquired. For example, the shooting control instruction may be an instruction to acquire an image of a set brightness. In this case, the processor 220 can adjust the brightness of the light output by the lighting module 235 so that an image of the set brightness is acquired by the image acquisition module 234.

[0055] The laser welding process performed by the laser welding apparatus 200 can be described below with reference to Figure 4.

[0056] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the laser welding process performed by a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment.

[0057] Referring to Figure 4, we can see the laser welding process in which the laser welding apparatus 200 laser-welds the electrode lead 420 to the electrode tab 410 provided on the electrode assembly using the laser irradiator 230 and the mask jig 240.

[0058] According to one embodiment, the laser welding process may include a cell transport device input step, an electrode lead input step, a first mask jig movement step, a pressurizing step, a laser irradiation step, and a second mask jig movement step. According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can perform the laser welding process by sequentially performing the steps included in the laser welding process.

[0059] In the cell transport device loading process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can load a cell transport device (not shown) that transports the electrode assembly such that the electrode tabs 410 provided on the electrode assembly are located at the lower end of the upper mask jig 240-1 and the upper end of the lower mask jig 240-2.

[0060] In the electrode lead insertion process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can insert the electrode lead 420 so that it is positioned at the lower end of the upper mask jig 240-1 and the upper end of the lower mask jig 240-2. Here, the laser welding apparatus 200 can adjust the position of the electrode lead 420 so that the joint of the electrode tab 410 and the joint of the electrode lead 420 are joined. The laser welding apparatus 200 can also adjust the positions of the electrode tab 410 and the electrode lead 420 so that the joint is positioned in the through hole of the upper mask jig 240-1.

[0061] In the first mask jig moving step, the laser welding apparatus 200 can move the mask jig 240 so that it contacts the electrode tabs 410 and / or electrode leads 420. For example, the laser welding apparatus 200 can lower the upper mask jig 240-1 and raise the lower mask jig 240-2 so that the mask jig 240 contacts the electrode tabs 410 and / or electrode leads 420.

[0062] In the pressurizing process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can pressurize the electrode tabs 410 and / or electrode leads 420 with the mask fixture 240 so that the electrode tabs 410 and / or electrode leads 420 are fixed between the upper mask fixture 240-1 and the lower mask fixture 240-2.

[0063] In the laser irradiation process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can use the laser irradiator 230 to irradiate the welding laser 430 into the through-hole of the upper mask jig 240-1, thereby laser welding the electrode lead 420 to the electrode tab 410.

[0064] In the second mask jig moving process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can move the mask jig 240 so that it is positioned before the laser welding process. For example, the laser welding apparatus 200 can raise the upper mask jig 240-1 to the position before the laser welding process and lower the lower mask jig 240-2 to the position before the laser welding process.

[0065] The following describes the image acquisition process performed by the laser welding apparatus 200.

[0066] According to one embodiment, the image acquisition process may include a cell transport device loading process, a first mask jig moving process, a pressurizing process, an imaging process, and a second mask jig moving process. Here, the image acquisition process may include the same processes as the remaining processes of the laser welding process, excluding the electrode lead loading process and the laser irradiation process. Therefore, if the time required for the imaging process is shorter than or the same as the time required for the electrode lead loading process and the laser irradiation process, the tact time of the image acquisition process may be shorter than or the same as the tact time of the laser welding process.

[0067] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can perform the image acquisition process by sequentially carrying out the steps included in the image acquisition process. In the following, only the remaining steps other than the first mask jig moving step, the pressurizing step, and the second mask jig moving step, which are the same steps as the laser welding process, will be described.

[0068] In the cell transport device loading process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can load a cell transport device that does not have electrode tabs installed.

[0069] During the imaging process, the laser welding apparatus 200 can adjust the imaging area of ​​the scanner 231 in the X-axis direction and / or the Y-axis direction. Once the imaging area of ​​the scanner 231 is focused, the laser welding apparatus 200 can control the image acquisition module 234 to image the object to be photographed. Next, the laser welding apparatus 200 can adjust the imaging area of ​​the scanner 231 to the initial area.

[0070] The following describes the operation of the laser welding apparatus 200 in which it uses the image acquisition module 234 to photograph the mask jig 240, which is the object to be photographed, with reference to Figure 5. The operation of the image acquisition module 234 described below can be controlled by the processor 220 included in the laser welding apparatus 200.

[0071] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the image acquisition process performed by a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment.

[0072] Referring to Figure 5, you can see an image 500 of a cross-section of the mask jig 240, including the through-hole.

[0073] According to one embodiment, the image acquisition module 234 can acquire multiple sub-images by capturing multiple imaging areas (510-1, 510-2, etc.). That is, each of the multiple sub-images may not be an image of the entire area of ​​image 500, but rather an image of a portion of image 500 having the same size.

[0074] According to one embodiment, the image acquisition module 234 can acquire an analysis image by combining at least some of the plurality of sub-images. Here, the analysis image can be an image of the region 520 including the opening of the mask jig 240. That is, the image acquisition module 234 can acquire an analysis image by combining the sub-images from the plurality of sub-images that correspond to the region 520 including the opening.

[0075] According to one embodiment, the image acquisition module 234 can acquire the analysis image at set intervals. Here, the set interval can be the interval included in the image acquisition control instruction acquired by the communication circuit 210 from the welding control device 100.

[0076] Figure 6 is an operation flowchart of a laser welding apparatus according to one embodiment. Figure 6 can be explained using the configuration shown in Figure 2.

[0077] The embodiment shown in Figure 6 is just one embodiment, and the order of steps in various embodiments of the present invention may differ from that shown in Figure 6. Some of the steps shown in Figure 6 may be omitted, the order of the steps may be changed, or steps may be merged.

[0078] Referring to Figure 6, in operation 605, the laser welding apparatus 200 can receive control instructions from the welding control device 100. According to one embodiment, the control instructions may include welding control instructions that cause the laser welding apparatus 200 to perform a laser welding process and / or imaging control instructions that cause the laser welding apparatus 200 to image the mask fixture 240.

[0079] In operation 610, the laser welding apparatus 200 can identify the control instruction received in operation 605.

[0080] If the received control instruction is identified as a welding control instruction in operation 610, in operation 615, the laser welding apparatus 200 may perform a laser welding process in which it laser-welds electrode leads to electrode tabs using the laser irradiator 230, the mask fixture 240, and / or other components (e.g., a cell transport device).

[0081] In operation 610, if the received control instruction is identified as an image capture control instruction, in operation 620, the laser welding apparatus 200 may perform an image capture step to capture the mask fixture 240 using the laser irradiator 230, the mask fixture 240, and / or other configurations.

[0082] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can capture multiple imaging areas and acquire multiple sub-images. That is, each of the multiple sub-images may not be an image of the entire area of ​​the image, but rather an image of a portion of the image having the same size.

[0083] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can acquire an analysis image by combining at least some of the plurality of sub-images. Here, the analysis image may be an image of the region including the opening of the mask jig 240. That is, the laser welding apparatus 200 can acquire an analysis image by combining the sub-images corresponding to the region including the opening from among the plurality of sub-images.

[0084] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can acquire the analysis image at set intervals. Here, the set interval can be the interval included in the imaging control instruction acquired in operation 605.

[0085] According to one embodiment, the laser welding apparatus 200 can transmit the image acquired by the image acquisition process to the welding control device 100.

[0086] The terms "contains," "constitutes," or "possesses," as used above, should be interpreted as meaning that the component may be inherent, and not as excluding other components, but as potentially including other components, unless otherwise specified. All terms, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as that generally understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the embodiments disclosed herein belong, unless otherwise defined. Commonly used terms, such as those defined in dictionaries, should be interpreted in accordance with their meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined herein.

Claims

1. A laser irradiator capable of laser welding electrode leads to electrode tabs (Tab) of an electrode assembly, A mask jig capable of fixing the electrode tab and the electrode lead, A welding control device and a communication circuit capable of communicating with each other, Includes a processor, The aforementioned processor, Using the aforementioned communication circuit, control instructions are received from the welding control device. If the control instruction is a welding control instruction, a laser welding process is performed using the laser irradiator and the mask jig to laser-weld the electrode lead to the electrode tab. A laser welding apparatus that, when the control instruction is an imaging control instruction, performs an image acquisition process to photograph the mask jig using the laser irradiator and the mask jig.

2. The laser welding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the laser irradiator includes a scanner, a laser welding module that performs laser welding using the scanner during the laser welding process, and an image acquisition module that photographs the mask jig using the scanner during the image acquisition process.

3. The processor uses the image acquisition module to: By capturing multiple shooting areas and obtaining multiple sub-images, The laser welding apparatus according to claim 2, which acquires an analysis image by combining at least a portion of the plurality of sub-images.

4. The laser welding apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the analysis image is an image of the region including the opening of the mask jig.

5. The laser welding apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the aforementioned shooting control instruction is an instruction to acquire the analysis image at set intervals.

6. The laser welding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the aforementioned shooting control instruction is an instruction to acquire an image of a set brightness.

7. The laser welding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor transmits the image acquired in the image acquisition step to the welding control device using the communication circuit.

8. The operation of receiving control instructions from the welding control device, If the control instruction is a welding control instruction, the operation involves performing a laser welding process in which an electrode lead is laser-welded to the electrode tab of the electrode assembly, A method for operating a laser welding apparatus, wherein, when the control instruction is an imaging control instruction, the operation includes an image acquisition step of photographing a mask jig capable of fixing the electrode tab and the electrode lead.

9. The laser welding apparatus includes a laser irradiator capable of laser welding the electrode lead to the electrode tab and the mask jig, The method of operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the laser irradiator includes a scanner, a laser welding module that performs laser welding using the scanner during the laser welding process, and an image acquisition module that photographs the mask jig using the scanner during the image acquisition process.

10. The operation of performing the aforementioned image capture process is: The operation involves capturing multiple shooting areas and acquiring multiple sub-images, A method for operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 8, comprising the operation of acquiring an analysis image by combining at least a portion of the plurality of sub-images.

11. The method of operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the analysis image is an image of the region including the opening of the mask jig.

12. The method for operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the aforementioned shooting control instruction is an instruction to acquire the analysis image at set intervals.

13. The method for operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the aforementioned shooting control instruction is an instruction to acquire an image of a set brightness.

14. The method for operating a laser welding apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising the operation of transmitting an image acquired by the image acquisition step to the welding control device.

Images