jig

Abstract

To connect a band material to a lamination body of a battery cell at a correct position.SOLUTION: A fixture comprises: a pair of press blocks that holds a lamination body; a clamp member that is provided to a pair of press blocks, and positions the band material arranged along the lamination body against the lamination body; a hinge mechanism that rotatably connects the clamp member against the press block between a use position and a saving position; and a cam mechanism that is provided to the hinge mechanism, and deviates the clamp member along a rotational shaft in accordance with a rotational position of the clamp member. When the clamp member is at the use position, the band material is nipped between the clamp member and the lamination body in a direction parallel to the rotational shaft. The cam mechanism deviates the clamp member to a direction separated from the lamination body during the clamp member is moved from the saving position to the use position, and when the clamp member is achieved to the use position, the clamp member is deviated to the lamination body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The technology disclosed in this specification relates to a jig, and more particularly to a jig used in manufacturing a battery stack. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a battery stack. In the battery stack, multiple battery cells are stacked and arranged between a pair of end plates. The pair of end plates are connected to each other by multiple band materials, and hold the multiple battery cells while compressing them. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-120963 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In manufacturing a battery stack, first, a stack is prepared in which a plurality of battery cells are stacked between a pair of end plates. Next, while compressing the stack with a predetermined load, a band material is positioned relative to the stack, and the band material is bonded to each of the end plates. This connects each of the pair of end plates to each other via the band material. If the band material is misaligned when bonding the band material to the end plates, there is a risk that the bonding between them cannot be performed with sufficient strength. This specification provides a technique for correctly positioning the band material relative to the stack of battery cells. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] This specification discloses a jig for positioning a band material connecting a pair of end plates to a stack in which multiple battery cells are stacked between a pair of end plates. The jig includes a pair of press blocks that hold the stack while compressing it along the stacking direction, a clamp member provided on at least one of the pair of press blocks that positions the band material arranged along the stack held by the pair of press blocks with respect to the stack, a hinge mechanism that rotatably connects the clamp member to the press block between a use position and a retracted position around an axis perpendicular to the stacking direction as a rotation axis, and a cam mechanism provided on the hinge mechanism that displaces the clamp member along the rotation axis depending on the rotation position of the clamp member, so that when the clamp member is in the use position, the band material is sandwiched between the clamp member and the stack in a direction parallel to the rotation axis, and the cam mechanism displaces the clamp member in a direction away from the stack while the clamp member moves from the retracted position to the use position, and displaces the clamp member toward the stack when the clamp member reaches the use position.

[0006] In the above-described jig, a stack having a pair of end plates and a plurality of battery cells is held while being compressed by a pair of press blocks. Each press block is provided with a clamp member that positions a band material arranged along the stack with respect to the stack. The clamp member is connected to the press block via a hinge mechanism and configured to be rotatable between a use position and a retracted position. When the clamp member rotates from the retracted position to the use position, the band material is clamped between the clamp member and the stack in a direction parallel to the rotation axis of the hinge mechanism. This positions the band material with respect to the stack.

[0007] The hinge mechanism is provided with a cam mechanism. The cam mechanism displaces the clamp member along the rotation axis according to the rotation position of the clamp member. The cam mechanism displaces the clamp member away from the stack while moving from the retracted position to the use position, and displaces the clamp member toward the stack when the use position is reached. This prevents the clamp member from unnecessary contact with the band material while the clamp member rotates to the use position, and prevents unintended positional displacement of the band material. Furthermore, when the clamp member reaches the use position, the clamp member moves toward the stack, so that the band material is sandwiched between the clamp member and the stack. At this time, the clamp member moves along the rotation axis of the hinge mechanism, so that unintended positional displacement of the band material is suppressed even when the clamp member comes into contact with the band material. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 to 3 are front views showing a schematic view of the jig 10 and the battery stack 20, with the movable block 26 in the compressed position and the clamp member 38 in the use position. In Figs. 1 to 3, the end plates 14 are hatched to clarify the configuration of the battery stack 20. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a front view showing a schematic view of the jig 10 and the battery stack 20, in which the movable block 26 is in the open position and the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic diagram of the jig 10 and the battery stack 20, with the movable block 26 in the compressed position and the clamp member 38 in the use position. [Figure 4] 4(a) to (c) are perspective views of the clamp member 38. In Fig. 4(a), the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position, and the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 180 degrees. In Fig. 4(b), the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position, and the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 90 degrees. In Fig. 4(c), the clamp member 38 is in the use position, and the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 0 degrees. [Diagram 5]5(a) to (c) each show the cam mechanism 42 provided in the hinge mechanism 40 in a plan view perpendicular to the rotation axis R of the hinge mechanism 40. FIG. 5(a) corresponds to FIG. 4(a) and shows a state in which the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 180 degrees. FIG. 5(b) corresponds to FIG. 4(b) and shows a state in which the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 90 degrees. FIG. 5(c) corresponds to FIG. 4(c) and shows a state in which the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 0 degrees. [Figure 6] 11 is a graph showing the distance D between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 that changes depending on the rotational position of the clamp member 38. [Figure 7] The process of setting the laminate S in the jig 10 is shown. [Figure 8] 4 shows a process of pressing the laminate S. [Figure 9] The process of attaching and positioning the band material 16 to the laminate S is shown. [Figure 10] 1 shows a process of joining a band material 16 to a pair of end plates 14. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] In one embodiment of the present technology, the clamp member may have an abutment surface that abuts against the band material in the use position. In this case, when the clamp member is in the use position, the abutment surface may be located on the same side of the press block as the laminate, and when the clamp member is in the retracted position, the abutment surface may be located on the opposite side of the press block from the laminate. With this configuration, when placing the laminate on the jig, the clamp member can be retracted to a position that does not interfere with the placement of the laminate.

[0010] In addition to the above-described configuration of the clamp member, the clamp member may have an abutment surface at one end and be connected to a hinge mechanism at the other end, such that the abutment surface of the clamp member can be moved significantly by rotating the clamp member.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present technology, the cam mechanism may include a pair of cam protrusions provided on the hinge mechanism and a biasing member that biases the clamp member along the rotation axis. With this configuration, the pair of cam protrusions are always brought into contact with each other by the biasing member. This allows the clamp member to be smoothly displaced along the shape of the cam protrusions.

[0012] In addition to the configuration of the cam mechanism described above, the hinge mechanism may have a first shaft portion fixed to the press block, and a second shaft portion fixed to the clamp member and arranged coaxially with the first shaft portion along the rotation axis. In this case, the pair of cam projections may be provided between the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion, and the biasing member may be provided on one of the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion.

[0013] In an embodiment of the present technology, the jig may further include an actuator that moves at least one of the pair of press blocks toward and away from the other. This allows the actuator to press the stack of battery cells. The actuator may be, for example, an electric motor.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present technology, at least one of the pair of press blocks may be supported by a plurality of elastic members arranged in parallel with each other. In this case, at least one of the pair of press blocks may be passively oscillated by contact with the stack. With such a configuration, at least one of the pair of press blocks can contact the stack over a wide surface, thereby suppressing local loads from acting on the stack.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present technology, a positioning member may be further provided that positions the laminate S arranged between the pair of press blocks by contacting the laminate S from a direction perpendicular to the stacking direction. With this configuration, when the laminate S is arranged on the jig 10, the position of the laminate S in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction can be determined by moving the laminate S toward the positioning member.

[0016] (Example) A jig 10 of the example will be described with reference to the drawings. The jig 10 is used for manufacturing a battery stack 20. In this specification, the positive x-axis direction in the drawing is the right in the left-right direction, and the negative x-axis direction is the left in the left-right direction. The positive y-axis direction in the drawing is the rear in the front-to-rear direction, and the negative y-axis direction is the front in the front-to-rear direction. The positive z-axis direction in the drawing is referred to as the up in the up-down direction, and the negative z-axis direction is referred to as the down in the up-down direction.

[0017] As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the battery stack 20 includes a laminate S and a plurality of band materials 16 that restrain the laminate S. The laminate S includes a plurality of battery cells 12 and a pair of end plates 14, and the plurality of battery cells 12 are stacked and arranged between the pair of end plates 14. The stacking direction of the plurality of battery cells 12 is parallel to the left-right direction (i.e., the x-axis). The pair of end plates 14 are connected to each other by the plurality of band materials 16, and hold the plurality of battery cells 12 while compressing them. The jig 10 of this embodiment is a jig used in manufacturing the battery stack 20, and is a jig for positioning the plurality of band materials 16 with respect to the laminate S. The number of the plurality of band materials 16 is not particularly limited. As an example, the battery stack 20 of this embodiment includes four band materials 16.

[0018] In the battery stack 20, a plurality of battery cells 12 are connected in series. The battery cells 12 are secondary battery cells, for example, lithium ion battery cells. However, the battery cells 12 are not limited to lithium ion batteries, and may be other secondary battery cells, such as nickel-metal hydride battery cells. The number of battery cells 12 is also not particularly limited. As an example, the battery stack 20 in this embodiment includes 13 battery cells 12, and has a rated voltage of 48 volts. The battery stack 20 can be used in various electric vehicles, such as electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles.

[0019] Each end plate 14 has a main body plate 14a and a bracket 14b. The main body plate 14a is a generally flat plate-shaped member. The pair of main body plates 14a are arranged perpendicular to the stacking direction and face each other with the multiple battery cells 12 between them. The bracket 14b is formed of a bent plate member. The bracket 14b has an upper portion 14b1, a lower portion 14b2, and a middle portion 14b3 located between the upper portion 14b1 and the lower portion 14b2. The upper portion 14b1 and the lower portion 14b2 extend along the stacking direction. The middle portion 14b3 extends along the up-down direction (i.e., the z-axis) and is attached to the main body plate 14a. In the pair of end plates 14, the upper portions 14b1 of the brackets 14b are connected to each other by a band material 16, and the lower portions 14b2 of the brackets 14b are connected to each other by another band material 16.

[0020] Each of the multiple band materials 16 is a long, band-shaped member. The multiple band materials 16 are adjacent to the stack S and extend along the stacking direction (i.e., the left-right direction) of the multiple battery cells 12. Both end portions of the band material 16 are respectively joined to a pair of end plates 14, and more specifically, joined to a pair of brackets 14b at joints 18. The joints 18 are formed by crimping the band material 16 and the brackets 14b.

[0021] The jig 10 includes a base 22, a pair of press blocks 24, 26, a plurality of clamp members 38, a plurality of hinge mechanisms 40, a plurality of cam mechanisms 42, an electric motor 28, and a linear motion mechanism 30. The base 22 has a bottom wall 22a, and a left wall 22b and a right wall 22c standing on both ends of the bottom wall 22a. The left wall 22b and the right wall 22c face each other. The bottom wall 22a can have the stack S placed on its upper surface. As an example, as shown in FIG. 3, a positioning wall 22d stands on the bottom wall 22a. The positioning wall 22d is located at the front of the bottom wall 22a. The positioning wall 22d extends along the left-right direction. This allows the position of the stack S in the front-rear direction to be determined when the stack S is moved from the rear toward the positioning wall 22d of the base 22.

[0022] The pair of press blocks 24, 26 are configured to be able to hold the laminate S while compressing it along the lamination direction. The pair of press blocks 24, 26 includes a fixed block 24 and a movable block 26. The fixed block 24 is provided on the left wall 22b of the base 22. The movable block 26 is located near the right wall 22c of the base 22 and is attached to the right wall 22c via a plurality of linear guides 32. This allows the movable block 26 to move along the left-right direction and to move forward and backward relative to the fixed block 24. There is no particular limit to the number of linear guides 32. As an example, the jig 10 of this embodiment includes four linear guides 32.

[0023] The electric motor 28 is connected to the movable block 26 via a linear motion mechanism 30. The linear motion mechanism 30 converts the rotational motion of the electric motor 28 into the linear motion of the movable block 26. This allows the electric motor 28 to move the movable block 26 toward and away from the fixed block 24. The movable block 26 can move between an open position shown in FIG. 2 and a compressed position shown in FIG. 1. When the laminate S is set on the jig 10, the movable block 26 is disposed in the open position, and when the band material 16 is subsequently assembled to the laminate S, the movable block 26 is disposed in the compressed position. When the movable block 26 moves to the compressed position, the laminate S is compressed and held by the pair of press blocks 24, 26. The electric motor 28 is an example of an "actuator" in the technology disclosed in this specification.

[0024] A plurality of elastic members 34 are provided between the linear motion mechanism 30 and the movable block 26. The movable block 26 is supported by the plurality of elastic members 34. The plurality of elastic members 34 are arranged in parallel with each other. The plurality of elastic members 34 are elastic members, such as spring members. With this configuration, when the movable block 26 abuts against the stack S, the movable block 26 can passively swing, for example, in response to a dimensional error of the stack S. This allows the movable block 26 to abut against the stack S over a wide surface, suppressing the application of a local load to the stack S. In this embodiment, four elastic members 34 are used, but the number of elastic members 34 may be two or three, or may be five or more.

[0025] A load sensor 36 is provided between the movable block 26 and the linear motion mechanism 30. The load sensor 36 measures the load that the movable block 26 applies to the stack S. This makes it possible to control the movement of the movable block 26 so that a predetermined load acts on the stack S. In this embodiment, a load cell is used as the load sensor 36.

[0026] As an example, the position of the movable block 26 is substantially equal to the position of the fixed block 24 in the up-down and front-rear directions. The fixed block 24 and the movable block 26 can have the same structure. However, the configuration of the pair of press blocks 24, 26 is not particularly limited. The pair of press blocks 24, 26 only need to be configured to be able to compress and hold the laminate S. The fixed block 24 may be a member separate from the left wall 22b of the base 22 as in this embodiment, or may be formed integrally with the left wall 22b of the base 22. Alternatively, in another embodiment, both of the pair of press blocks 24, 26 may be movable blocks.

[0027] Each of the pair of press blocks 24, 26 is provided with a plurality of clamp members 38. As an example, the fixed block 24 has a pair of side surfaces 24s in the front-rear direction, and the clamp members 38 are attached to the upper and lower ends of each side surface 24s. Similarly, the movable block 26 has a pair of side surfaces 26s in the front-rear direction, and the clamp members 38 are attached to the upper and lower ends of each side surface 26s. The clamp members 38 position the band material 16 with respect to the laminate S held by the pair of press blocks 24, 26.

[0028] The hinge mechanism 40 and the cam mechanism 42 will be described with reference to Figs. 4(a) to 4(c) and Figs. 5(a) to 5(c). As shown in Figs. 4(a) to 4(c), the hinge mechanism 40 rotatably connects the clamp member 38 to the press blocks 24, 26 with a rotation axis R that is perpendicular to the stacking direction. This allows the clamp member 38 to rotate between the use position shown in Figs. 1 and 3 and the retracted position shown in Fig. 2. When the clamp member 38 is in the use position, the clamp member 38 is close to the stack S, and the band material 16 is held between the clamp member 38 and the stack S. This positions the band material 16 relative to the stack S. On the other hand, when the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position, the clamp member 38 is separated from the stack S, and the stack S is allowed to be inserted into and removed from the jig 10.

[0029] The clamp member 38 has a contact surface 38a that contacts the band material 16 when in the use position. When the clamp member 38 is in the use position, the contact surface 38a is located on the same side as the laminate S with respect to the press blocks 24, 26 (see FIG. 1). When the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position, the contact surface 38a is located on the opposite side of the laminate S with respect to the press blocks 24, 26 (see FIG. 2). With this configuration, when placing the laminate S in the jig 10 and when removing the laminate S from the jig 10, the clamp member 38 can be retracted to a position that does not interfere with the placement and removal of the laminate S.

[0030] The clamp member 38 has an abutment surface 38a at one end and is connected to the hinge mechanism 40 at the other end. With this configuration, the abutment surface 38a of the clamp member 38 can be moved significantly by rotating the clamp member 38. The hinge mechanism 40 is configured to be rotatable in a range of 0 degrees to 180 degrees. Here, when the rotation position of the clamp member 38 is the position of FIG. 4(c) (use position), the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 0 degrees, when the rotation position of the clamp member 38 is the position of FIG. 4(b), the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 90 degrees, and when the rotation position of the clamp member 38 is the position of FIG. 4(a), the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is 180 degrees. Note that the rotation angle of the hinge mechanism 40 is not limited thereto, and may be rotatable in a range of 180 degrees or more.

[0031] The hinge mechanism 40 has a first shaft portion 44 and a second shaft portion 46. The first shaft portion 44 is fixed to the press blocks 24, 26. The second shaft portion 46 is fixed to the clamp member 38 and is arranged coaxially with the first shaft portion 44 along the rotation axis R. A cam mechanism 42 is provided between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 of the hinge mechanism 40. The cam mechanism 42 displaces the clamp member 38 along the rotation axis R in accordance with the rotation position of the clamp member 38.

[0032] The configuration of the cam mechanism 42 is not particularly limited. As an example, the cam mechanism 42 in the present embodiment has a pair of cam protrusions 48a, 48b provided on the hinge mechanism 40, and a biasing member 50 that biases one of the pair of cam protrusions 48a, 48b toward the other. The pair of cam protrusions 48a, 48b includes a first cam protrusion 48a provided on the first shaft portion 44 and a second cam protrusion 48b provided on the second shaft portion 46. The first cam protrusion 48a protrudes from the first shaft portion 44 toward the second shaft portion 46 in a direction parallel to the rotation axis R, and the second cam protrusion 48b protrudes from the second shaft portion 46 toward the first shaft portion 44 in a direction parallel to the rotation axis R. The biasing member 50 is provided on the second shaft portion 46. However, the number and position of the biasing members 50 are not particularly limited, and it is sufficient that the biasing members 50 are provided on one of the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 5(a), when the clamp member 38 is in the retracted position, the pair of cam projections 48a, 48b are positioned apart from each other. At this time, the distance D between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 is relatively small. In contrast, as shown in FIG. 5(b), while the clamp member 38 moves from the retracted position to the use position, the pair of cam projections 48a, 48b come into contact with each other, and the distance D between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 increases. As a result, the clamp member 38 is displaced in a direction away from the stack S, and the clamp member 38 is prevented from contacting the band material 16. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5(c), when the clamp member 38 moves to the use position, the pair of cam projections 48a, 48b completely pass each other, and the distance D between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 rapidly decreases. As a result, the clamp member 38 is sharply displaced along the rotation axis R toward the stack S, and holds the band material 16 between the clamp member 38 and the stack S. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the distance D between the first shaft portion 44 and the second shaft portion 46 changes depending on the rotational position of the clamp member 38 (the rotational angle of the hinge mechanism 40), and in response to this change, the clamp member 38 is displaced along the rotation axis R.

[0034] 7 to 10, a method for manufacturing a battery stack 20 using the jig 10 will be described. First, a stack S is prepared in which multiple battery cells 12 are stacked between a pair of end plates 14. The manufacturing method in this embodiment will particularly describe a method for positioning multiple band materials 16 with respect to the prepared stack S and joining each band material 16 to the pair of end plates 14.

[0035] As shown in Fig. 7, the stack S is set in the jig 10. At this time, the movable block 26 is moved to the open position, and the clamp member 38 is moved to the retracted position. The stack S is arranged so that the stacking direction of the stack S coincides with the direction in which the pair of press blocks 24, 26 face each other. The stack S is slid from the rear to the front on the base 22, and the side of the stack S is brought into contact with the positioning wall 12d shown in Fig. 3, thereby positioning the stack S at a predetermined position on the base 22.

[0036] 8, the laminate S is pressed by the jig 10. Specifically, the movable block 26 is moved from the release position to the compression position. As a result, the laminate S is compressed and held by the pair of press blocks 24, 26.

[0037] Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the jig 10 is used to place each of the multiple band materials 16 on the stack S. Each band material 16 is placed on the brackets 14b of the pair of end plates 14. After the band material 16 is placed, the clamp member 38 is rotated to move it from the retracted position to the use position. When the clamp member 38 reaches the use position, the band material 16 is clamped between the clamp member 38 and the stack S. This positions the band material 16 relative to the stack S.

[0038] Next, as shown in Fig. 10, the band material 16 is connected to the pair of end plates 14. Specifically, the band material 16 and the bracket 14b of the end plate 14 are connected by a joint 18. The joint 18 is formed by crimping the overlapping portion of the two plate members 14, 16, i.e., the band material 16 and the bracket 14b, from above the band material 16. At this time, since the band material 16 is fixed to the laminate S by the clamp member 38 in the previous step of positioning the band material 16, unintentional positional deviation of the band material 16 is suppressed. Therefore, the band material 16 can be joined with sufficient strength.

[0039] This completes the battery stack 20 in which the band material 16 is correctly positioned with respect to the laminate S. When removing the battery stack 20 from the jig 10, the clamp members 38 are rotationally moved from the use position (the rotated position of the clamp members 38 in FIG. 1) to the retracted position (the rotated position of the clamp members 38 in FIG. 2), and then the movable block 26 is moved from the compressed position (the position of the movable block 26 in FIG. 1) to the released position (the position of the movable block 26 in FIG. 2).

[0040] In manufacturing the battery stack 20, as described above, a stacked body S is prepared in which a plurality of battery cells 12 are stacked between a pair of end plates 14. Next, while compressing the stacked body S with a predetermined load, the band material 16 is positioned with respect to the stacked body S, and the band material 16 is bonded to each of the end plates 14. In this way, the pair of end plates 14 are connected to each other via the band material 16. If there is any misalignment of the band material 16 when bonding the band material 16 to the end plates 14, there is a risk that they will not be bonded with sufficient strength.

[0041] In order to solve the above problems, in the jig 10 of this embodiment, a stack S having a pair of end plates 14 and a plurality of battery cells 12 is held while being compressed by a pair of press blocks 24, 26. Each of the press blocks 24, 26 is provided with a plurality of clamp members 38 that position a band material arranged along the stack S with respect to the stack S. Each clamp member 38 is connected to the press blocks 24, 26 via a hinge mechanism 40, and is configured to be rotatable between a use position and a retracted position. When the clamp member 38 rotates from the retracted position to the use position, the band material 16 is clamped between the clamp member 38 and the stack S in a direction parallel to the rotation axis R of the hinge mechanism 40. This positions the band material 16 with respect to the stack S.

[0042] Furthermore, the hinge mechanism 40 is provided with a cam mechanism 42. The cam mechanism 42 displaces the clamp member 38 along the rotation axis R according to the rotation position of the clamp member 38. The cam mechanism 42 displaces the clamp member 38 in a direction away from the stack S while moving from the retracted position to the use position, and displaces the clamp member 38 toward the stack S when the clamp member 38 reaches the use position. This prevents the clamp member 38 from unnecessarily contacting the band material 16 while the clamp member 38 rotates to the use position, and prevents unintended positional displacement of the band material 16. Furthermore, when the clamp member 38 reaches the use position, the clamp member 38 moves toward the stack S, so that the band material 16 is sandwiched between the clamp member 38 and the stack S. At this time, the clamp member 38 moves along the rotation axis R of the hinge mechanism 40, so that unintended positional displacement of the band material 16 is suppressed even when the clamp member 38 contacts the band material 16.

[0043] Specific examples of the technology disclosed in this specification have been described in detail above, but these are merely examples and do not limit the scope of the claims. The technology described in the claims includes various modifications and changes to the specific examples exemplified above. The technical elements described in this specification or the drawings exhibit technical utility alone or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations described in the claims at the time of filing. The technology exemplified in this specification or the drawings can achieve multiple objectives simultaneously, and achieving one of the objectives itself has technical utility. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 10: Jig 12: Battery cell 14: End plate 14a: Plate section 14b: Bracket part 16: Band material 18: Joint 20: Battery stack 22: Foundation 24,26: Press block 28:Motor 30: Linear motion mechanism 32: Linear guide 34: Elastic member 36: Load sensor 38: Clamping parts 38a: Contact surface 40: Hinge mechanism 42: Cam mechanism 44: First shaft 46: Second shaft 48a, 48b: Cam protrusions 50: biasing member R: Rotation axis S: Laminate D: Distance

Claims

1. A jig for positioning a band material that connects a pair of end plates to each other in a stack in which a number of battery cells are stacked between the pair of end plates, the jig comprising: A pair of press blocks that compress and hold the laminate in the lamination direction; a clamp member provided on at least one of the pair of press blocks and configured to position the band material arranged along the laminate held by the pair of press blocks with respect to the laminate; a hinge mechanism that rotatably connects the clamp member to the press block between a use position and a retracted position, the hinge mechanism having an axis perpendicular to the stacking direction as a rotation axis; a cam mechanism provided in the hinge mechanism and configured to displace the clamp member along the rotation axis in response to a rotation position of the clamp member; Equipped with When the clamp member is in the use position, the band material is clamped between the clamp member and the laminate in a direction parallel to the rotation axis, the cam mechanism displaces the clamp member in a direction away from the stack while the clamp member moves from the retracted position to the use position, and displaces the clamp member toward the stack when the clamp member reaches the use position. jig.

2. the clamp member has an abutment surface that abuts against the band material in the use position, When the clamp member is in the use position, the contact surface is located on the same side as the laminate with respect to the press block, When the clamp member is in the retracted position, the contact surface is located on the opposite side of the stack with respect to the press block. The jig according to claim 1 .

3. The jig according to claim 2 , wherein the clamp member has the abutment surface at one end and is connected to the hinge mechanism at the other end.

4. The jig according to claim 1 , wherein the cam mechanism includes a pair of cam protrusions provided on the hinge mechanism, and a biasing member that biases the clamp member along the rotation shaft.

5. The hinge mechanism includes: A first shaft portion fixed to the press block; a second shaft portion that is fixed to the clamp member and is coaxially disposed along the first shaft portion and the rotation axis, The pair of cam protrusions is provided between the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion, The jig according to claim 4 , wherein the biasing member is provided on one of the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion.

6. The jig according to claim 1 , further comprising an actuator that moves at least one of the pair of press blocks toward and away from the other of the pair of press blocks.

7. The jig according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein at least one of the pair of press blocks is supported by a plurality of elastic members arranged in parallel with each other and is passively swingable by contact with the laminate.

8. The jig according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a positioning member that positions the laminate arranged between the pair of press blocks by abutting the laminate from a direction perpendicular to the stacking direction.

Images