Battery cell pairing system, battery production system and battery cell pairing method

Abstract

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a battery cell pairing system, a battery production system and a battery cell pairing method. The battery cell pairing system comprises a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first turnover mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second turnover mechanism and a rotating mechanism. The conveyor line is configured to convey first battery cells and second battery cells. The grouping mechanism is configured to receive the first battery cells and the second battery cells, and form battery cell groups from the first battery cells and the second battery cells. The first turnover mechanism is configured to selectively turn over first battery cells in a battery cell group. The pairing mechanism is configured to pair first battery cells with second battery cells in the battery cell groups to form paired groups, each paired group comprising a first portion and a second portion that are adjacently arranged. The second turnover mechanism is configured to selectively turn over a first portion of a paired group. The rotating mechanism is configured to rotate the first portions or the second portions. Thus, compatibility with two-tab battery cell pairing and four-tab battery cell pairing can be achieved.

Description

A battery cell pairing system, a battery production system, and a battery cell pairing method

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] The present disclosure is based on the Chinese patent application with application number 202410397475.2, application date April 3, 2024, and invention name “A battery cell pairing system, a battery production system, and a battery cell pairing method”, and claims the priority of the Chinese patent application. The entire content of the Chinese patent application is hereby incorporated into the present disclosure as a reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of battery production equipment, and in particular to a battery cell pairing system, a battery production system, and a battery cell pairing method. Background Art

[0004] This section is intended to provide a background or context for the embodiments of the present disclosure. No admission is made that the description herein is prior art by virtue of its inclusion in this section.

[0005] Taking wound cells as an example, to increase the capacity of a single battery, the number of wound cell layers should be increased as much as possible. However, beyond a certain number of layers, the cell's performance will be affected. Therefore, the solution of combining two or more bare cells into a single battery becomes more important. Cell pairing is generally divided into two-electrode tab pairing and four-electrode tab pairing. In the existing technology, the two-electrode tab pairing and the four-electrode tab pairing processes are performed separately by two sets of pairing equipment, which are incompatible and thus increase production costs.

[0006] Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of this, the embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to provide a battery cell pairing system, a battery production system, and a battery cell pairing method, which can reduce production costs.

[0008] To achieve the above-mentioned object, a first aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a battery cell pairing system, wherein the battery cell pairing system is configured to pair a first battery cell with a second battery cell to form the battery cell, and the battery cell pairing system includes:

[0009] A conveyor line, the conveyor line comprising an incoming material conveyor line, the incoming material conveyor line comprising a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, the first conveying area being configured to convey the first battery cell, and the second conveying area being configured to convey the second battery cell, wherein the first direction intersects a conveying direction of the conveyor line;

[0010] a grouping mechanism, configured to receive the first battery cell and the second battery cell, and group the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group;

[0011] a first flipping mechanism, located downstream of the grouping mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, and configured to selectively flip a first battery cell of the battery cell group;

[0012] a pairing mechanism, located downstream of the first flipping mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, the pairing mechanism being configured to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, the paired group comprising a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacently;

[0013] a second flipping mechanism, located downstream of the pairing mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, the second flipping mechanism being configured to selectively flip the first portion of the pairing group;

[0014] A rotating mechanism is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line, and the rotating mechanism is configured to rotate the first part or the second part.

[0015] The battery cell pairing system of the embodiment of the present disclosure includes a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first flipping mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second flipping mechanism and a rotating mechanism. The conveyor line conveys the first battery cell and the second battery cell, the grouping mechanism receives the first battery cell and the second battery cell, and combines the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, which may include different numbers of first battery cells and second battery cells as required. The first flipping mechanism can selectively flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group as required. The pairing mechanism pairs the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, which includes a first part and a second part that are adjacently arranged. The second flipping mechanism can selectively flip the first part of the pairing group as required, and the rotating mechanism completes the pairing of the battery cells by rotating the first part or the second part so that the same tabs of the first part and the second part are opposite to each other. The battery cell pairing system in the embodiment of the present disclosure is compatible with both two-tab pairing and four-tab pairing of battery cells, reduces production costs, and is conducive to automation, thereby improving the efficiency of battery cell pairing. Furthermore, the incoming material conveyor line is configured with a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, for conveying the first battery cell and the second battery cell separately. This facilitates the subsequent pairing of the first battery cell and the second battery cell. For example, the first battery cell and the second battery cell can be handled separately, which reduces confusion, facilitates operation, and reduces the risk of operational errors.

[0016] In some embodiments, each of the battery cell groups includes two first battery cells arranged along the conveying direction and two second battery cells arranged along the conveying direction, and the pairing mechanism is configured to stack the two second battery cells onto the two first battery cells to form a first part and a second part, or to stack the two first battery cells onto the two second battery cells to form a first part and a second part, and the first part and the second part both include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together.

[0017] In this embodiment, the pairing mechanism can be used to stack the first battery cell and the second battery cell to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. The first part and the second part both include the first battery cell and the second battery cell stacked together. This is conducive to achieving pairing of the four-pole tabs of the battery cells.

[0018] In some embodiments, the battery cell pairing system further includes a gluing mechanism configured to glue the first portion and the second portion.

[0019] The gluing mechanism applies glue to the first and second parts of the paired group, specifically the first and second cells in the paired group, where the quad tabs are paired. The gluing mechanism is located on the conveyor line's transport path. The paired group, which is transported by the conveyor line and has paired quad tabs, passes through the gluing mechanism, where it applies glue to the paired group, securing the first and second parts of the paired group.

[0020] In some embodiments, each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the pairing mechanism is configured to transfer the second battery cell to a downstream or upstream position relative to the first battery cell along the conveying direction.

[0021] When pairing the two poles of the battery cell, the first battery cell and the second battery cell are converted to be arranged along the conveying direction through the pairing mechanism to achieve pairing and form a pairing group. The pairing group includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacent to each other, one of the first battery cell and the second battery cell is the first part, and the other of the first battery cell and the second battery cell is the second part.

[0022] In some embodiments, the conveyor line includes an incoming material conveyor line, a return conveyor line, and a discharge conveyor line connected in sequence along the conveying direction. The conveying direction of the incoming material conveyor line is the same as that of the discharge conveyor line, and the conveying direction of the incoming material conveyor line is opposite to that of the return conveyor line.

[0023] By setting up a return conveyor line connected between the incoming material conveyor line and the unloading material conveyor line, the occupied space of the battery cell pairing system can be reduced and the structural compactness of the battery cell pairing system can be improved.

[0024] In some embodiments, each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are alternately arranged in the first direction.

[0025] Here, since the battery cell group may include either one first battery cell and one second battery cell, or two first battery cells and two second battery cells, during the battery cell tab pairing process, there is an empty space in both the first conveying area and the second conveying area in each battery cell group. Thus, by staggering the first battery cell and the second battery cell in the battery cell group in the first direction, pairing the first battery cell and the second battery cell in subsequent steps is facilitated.

[0026] In some embodiments, the grouping mechanism is configured to rotate the first battery cell and the second battery cell.

[0027] The first battery cell and the second battery cell are rotated 90° by the grouping mechanism so that the tabs of the first battery cell and the second battery cell are placed parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, which is beneficial to the subsequent pairing step.

[0028] In some embodiments, the battery cell pairing system further includes a loading mechanism configured to load the first battery cell and the second battery cell.

[0029] The loading mechanism can be a whole, used to load the first battery cell and the second battery cell respectively. The loading mechanism can also include a first loading unit and a second loading unit, the first loading unit is used to load the first battery cell, and the second loading unit is used to load the second battery cell.

[0030] In some embodiments, the battery cell pairing system further includes a code scanning mechanism configured to scan a code of the first battery cell and / or the second battery cell.

[0031] The code scanning mechanism is used to scan the first and second battery cells after the appearance inspection is passed, and identify the identification codes on the core surfaces of the first and second battery cells to facilitate the production management of the subsequent pairing of the first and second battery cells. The code scanning mechanism in this embodiment can be a code scanning gun.

[0032] In some embodiments, the battery cell pairing system further includes a buffer station configured to buffer unqualified first battery cells and second battery cells.

[0033] The first battery cell and the second battery cell that fail the appearance inspection or the code scanning are transferred to the cache station. The first battery cell and the second battery cell that fail the appearance inspection or the code scanning are processed off-site to make them meet the standards and then re-paired without stopping the machine for processing, thereby improving production efficiency.

[0034] A second aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a battery production system, comprising a welding device, a film wrapping device, a shell insertion device, and the above-mentioned battery cell pairing system, wherein the welding device is configured to weld the paired battery cells, the film wrapping device is configured to wrap the welded battery cells with an insulating film, and the shell insertion device is configured to shell the battery cells wrapped with the insulating film.

[0035] The cell pairing system of the battery production system of the embodiment of the present disclosure includes a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first flipping mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second flipping mechanism, and a rotating mechanism. The conveyor line conveys the first cell and the second cell, the grouping mechanism receives the first cell and the second cell, and combines the first cell and the second cell into a cell group. The cell group can include different numbers of first cells and second cells as required. The first flipping mechanism can selectively flip the first cell of the cell group as required. The pairing mechanism pairs the first cell and the second cell of the cell group to form a pairing group. The pairing group includes a first part and a second part that are adjacently arranged. The second flipping mechanism can selectively flip the first part of the pairing group as required. The rotating mechanism completes the pairing of the cells by rotating the first part or the second part so that the same tabs of the first part and the second part are opposite to each other. The cell pairing system of the embodiment of the present disclosure is compatible with both two-tab pairing and four-tab pairing of cells, reducing production costs and facilitating automation, thereby improving the efficiency of cell pairing.

[0036] A third aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure provides a cell pairing method, which is applied to a cell pairing system, wherein the cell pairing system is configured to pair a first cell and a second cell to form the cell, and the cell pairing system includes a control device, a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first flipping mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second flipping mechanism, and a rotating mechanism. The conveyor line includes an incoming material conveyor line, and the incoming material conveyor line includes a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, the first conveying area being configured to convey the first cell, and the second conveying area being configured to convey the second cell, wherein the first direction intersects with a conveying direction of the conveyor line. The cell pairing method includes:

[0037] In response to the first battery cell and the second battery cell arriving at the grouping mechanism, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group;

[0038] The control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group, and the first flipping mechanism is located downstream of the grouping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line;

[0039] The control device controls the pairing mechanism to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, wherein the paired group includes a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacent to each other, and the pairing mechanism is located downstream of the first flipping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line;

[0040] The control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group, and the second flipping mechanism is located downstream of the pairing mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line;

[0041] The control device controls the rotating mechanism to rotate the first part or the second part to complete the pairing. Along the conveying direction of the conveying line, the rotating mechanism is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism.

[0042] In the battery cell pairing method of the disclosed embodiment, a conveyor line conveys a first battery cell and a second battery cell, a grouping mechanism receives the first and second battery cells, and combines the first and second batteries into a battery cell group. The battery cell group can include different numbers of first and second batteries as needed. A first flipping mechanism selectively flips the first battery cell in the battery cell group as needed. A pairing mechanism pairs the first and second batteries in the battery cell group to form a paired group, which includes a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacently. A second flipping mechanism selectively flips the first portion of the paired group as needed. A rotation mechanism rotates the first or second portion so that the same tabs of the first and second portions face each other, completing the pairing of the batteries. The battery cell pairing method of the disclosed embodiment can achieve pairing of two or four tabs in a battery cell, reducing production costs and facilitating automation, thereby improving battery cell pairing efficiency. Furthermore, the incoming material conveyor line is provided with first and second conveying areas arranged side by side along a first direction for conveying the first and second batteries, respectively, facilitating pairing of the first and second batteries in subsequent steps. For example, the first battery cell and the second battery cell can be operated separately, which is not easy to be confused, easy to operate, and not prone to operating errors.

[0043] In some embodiments, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including:

[0044] The grouping mechanism groups the two first battery cells and the two second battery cells into a battery cell group.

[0045] Here, each battery cell group includes two first battery cells and two second battery cells, and this embodiment is a four-pole tab pairing of battery cells.

[0046] In some embodiments, the control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group, including:

[0047] The control device controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group by 180°.

[0048] Here, during the pairing process of the four tabs of the battery cell, the tab of the first battery cell is close to the bottom surface (lower core surface) of the battery cell. Before pairing, it is necessary to flip the first battery cell 180 degrees so that the tab of the first battery cell is close to the top surface (upper core surface) of the battery cell, which is conducive to pairing in subsequent steps.

[0049] In some embodiments, the control device controls the pairing mechanism to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, wherein the paired group includes a first part and a second part disposed adjacent to each other, including:

[0050] The control device controls the pairing mechanism to be configured to stack two first battery cells onto two second battery cells respectively to form a first part and a second part, wherein the first part and the second part both include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together.

[0051] In this embodiment, the pairing mechanism can be used to stack the first battery cell and the second battery cell to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. The first part and the second part both include the first battery cell and the second battery cell stacked together. This is conducive to achieving pairing of the four-pole tabs of the battery cells.

[0052] In some embodiments, the battery cell pairing system further includes a gluing mechanism. After the pairing mechanism pairs the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, the battery cell pairing method further includes:

[0053] The control device controls the gluing mechanism to glue the first part and the second part.

[0054] The gluing mechanism applies glue to the first and second parts of the paired group, specifically the first and second cells in the paired group, where the quad tabs are paired. The gluing mechanism is located on the conveyor line's transport path. The paired group, which is transported by the conveyor line and has paired quad tabs, passes through the gluing mechanism, where it applies glue to the paired group, securing the first and second parts of the paired group.

[0055] In some embodiments, the control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group, including:

[0056] The control device controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group by 180°.

[0057] Here, the pole ears of the first part and the second part are oriented in the same direction. In order to subsequently rotate the first part or the second part 180 degrees through the rotating mechanism so that the pole ears of the first part are opposite to the pole ears of the second part, it is necessary to flip the first part of the pairing group 180° by controlling the second flipping mechanism before rotation.

[0058] In some embodiments, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including:

[0059] The grouping mechanism groups one of the first battery cells and one of the second battery cells into a battery cell group.

[0060] Here, each battery cell group includes a first battery cell and a second battery cell. In this case, the battery cell group corresponds to a pair of battery cell tabs.

[0061] In some embodiments, the grouping mechanism groups one of the first battery cell and one of the second battery cell into a battery cell group, comprising:

[0062] The first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are arranged along a first direction and staggered in the first direction, and the first direction intersects the conveying direction.

[0063] Here, since the battery cell group may include either one first battery cell and one second battery cell, or two first battery cells and two second battery cells, during the battery cell tab pairing process, there is an empty space in both the first conveying area and the second conveying area in each battery cell group. Thus, by staggering the first battery cell and the second battery cell in the battery cell group in the first direction, pairing the first battery cell and the second battery cell in subsequent steps is facilitated.

[0064] In some embodiments, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including:

[0065] Each of the battery cell groups includes two first battery cells arranged along the conveying direction and two second battery cells arranged along the conveying direction, and the pairing mechanism is configured to stack two second battery cells onto two first battery cells to form a first part and a second part, or stack two first battery cells onto two second battery cells to form a first part and a second part, wherein both the first part and the second part include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together; or,

[0066] Each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are alternately arranged in the first direction. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0067] FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of a battery cell pairing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the battery cell quad tab pairing is shown;

[0068] FIG2 is a schematic structural diagram of a battery cell pairing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the pairing of two tabs of a battery cell is shown;

[0069] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a method for pairing battery cells according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0070] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a partial implementation flow of a method for pairing quadrupole tabs of a battery cell according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0071] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a partial implementation flow of a method for pairing two tabs of a battery cell according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0072] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a battery cell according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0073] Explanation of the accompanying symbols 1. Conveyor line; 11. Incoming material conveyor line; 12. Return conveyor line; 13. Unloading material conveyor line; 2. Grouping mechanism; 3. First turning mechanism; 4. Second turning mechanism; 5. Pairing mechanism; 6. Rotating mechanism; 7. Gluing mechanism; 8. Code scanning mechanism; 9. Cache station; 21. Loading mechanism; 10. Battery cell pairing system; 20. First battery cell; 30. Second battery cell. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0074] It should be noted that, unless there is a conflict, the embodiments and technical features in the embodiments of the present disclosure can be combined with each other, and the detailed description in the specific implementation methods should be understood as an explanation of the purpose of the present disclosure and should not be regarded as an improper limitation on the present disclosure.

[0075] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure belongs; the terms used herein are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit this disclosure; the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof in this disclosure are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions.

[0076] In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, technical terms such as "first," "second," and "third" are used solely to distinguish different objects and should not be understood to indicate or imply relative importance or to implicitly specify the quantity, specific order, or primary and secondary relationship of the technical features indicated. In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, "plurality" means more than two, unless otherwise specifically defined.

[0077] References herein to "embodiments" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments may be included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor does it constitute an independent or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is understood, both explicitly and implicitly, by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0078] In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the term "and / or" is simply a description of the association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent three situations: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this document generally indicates that the associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0079] In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the orientations or positional relationships indicated by technical terms such as "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "circumferential", "height direction", "first direction", and "second direction" are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing the embodiments of the present disclosure and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed, operated or used in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be understood as limiting the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0080] In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, technical terms such as "installed," "connected," "connect," and "fixed" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they can refer to fixed connections, detachable connections, or integration; mechanical connections or electrical connections; direct connections or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and can refer to internal connectivity between two components or interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the embodiments of the present disclosure based on specific circumstances.

[0081] In the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the technical term "contact" should be understood in a broad sense, and can be direct contact, contact through an intermediate medium layer, contact with essentially no interaction force between the two contacting parties, or contact with interaction force between the two contacting parties.

[0082] With the development of clean energy, more and more devices are using electricity as a driving force. Consequently, power batteries, such as lithium-ion batteries, that can store large amounts of electricity and undergo multiple charge and discharge cycles are rapidly developing. These batteries are not only used in energy storage systems such as hydropower, thermal power, wind power, and solar power plants, but are also widely used in electric vehicles such as electric bicycles, electric motorcycles, and electric vehicles, as well as in aerospace and other fields.

[0083] The battery referred to in the embodiments of this disclosure refers to a single physical module comprising one or more battery cells to provide higher voltage and capacity. For example, the battery referred to in this disclosure may include a battery module or a battery pack. Batteries generally include a housing for enclosing one or more battery cells. The housing prevents liquids or other foreign matter from affecting the charging or discharging of the battery cells.

[0084] In the present disclosure, battery cells may include lithium-ion secondary batteries, lithium-ion primary batteries, lithium-sulfur batteries, sodium-lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries, or magnesium-ion batteries, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Battery cells may be cylindrical, rectangular, or in other shapes, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0085] A battery cell includes an electrode assembly and an electrolyte. The electrode assembly consists of a positive electrode sheet, a negative electrode sheet, and a separator. A battery cell primarily operates by the movement of metal ions between the positive and negative electrode sheets. The positive electrode sheet includes a positive current collector and a positive active material layer. The positive active material layer is coated on the surface of the positive electrode collector. The uncoated positive electrode collector protrudes from the coated positive electrode collector, and the uncoated positive electrode collector serves as the positive electrode tab. For lithium-ion batteries, for example, the positive electrode current collector can be made of aluminum, and the positive electrode active material can be lithium cobalt oxide, lithium iron phosphate, ternary lithium, or lithium manganese oxide. The negative electrode sheet includes a negative current collector and a negative active material layer. The negative active material layer is coated on the surface of the negative electrode collector. The uncoated negative electrode collector protrudes from the coated negative electrode collector, and the uncoated negative electrode collector serves as the negative electrode tab. The negative electrode current collector can be made of copper, and the negative electrode active material can be carbon or silicon. To ensure high current flow without melting, multiple positive electrode tabs are stacked together, and multiple negative electrode tabs are stacked together. The separator can be made of materials such as PP (polypropylene) or PE (polyethylene).

[0086] A battery cell also includes an insulating film and a casing. The insulating film is applied to the outside of the electrode assembly, and the casing encapsulates the electrode assembly coated with the insulating film to form a battery cell. The insulating film can be Mylar film, and the casing can be aluminum. After the electrode assembly is wound, the Mylar film and casing are encapsulated through the Mylar wrapping process and the casing insertion process. The Mylar film seals and protects the electrode assembly, effectively insulating the electrode assembly and casing from each other, preventing internal short circuits in the battery cell. The casing also provides protection.

[0087] Taking wound cells as an example, to increase the capacity of a single battery, the number of wound cell layers should be increased as much as possible. However, beyond a certain number of layers, the cell's performance will be affected. Therefore, the solution of combining two or more bare cells into a single battery becomes more important. Cell pairing is generally divided into two-electrode tab pairing and four-electrode tab pairing. In the existing technology, the two-electrode tab pairing and the four-electrode tab pairing processes are performed separately by two sets of pairing equipment, which are incompatible and thus increase production costs.

[0088] To reduce production costs, referring to Figures 1 to 6 , embodiments of the present disclosure provide a cell pairing system 10. This cell pairing system 10 is configured to pair a first cell 20 with a second cell 30 to form a cell. The system 10 includes a conveyor line 1, a grouping mechanism 2, a first flipping mechanism 3, a pairing mechanism 5, a second flipping mechanism 4, and a rotation mechanism 6. The conveyor line 1 includes an incoming material conveyor line 11, which includes a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction. The first conveying area is configured to convey the first cell 20, and the second conveying area is configured to convey the second cell 30. The first direction intersects the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1. The grouping mechanism 2 is configured to receive the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 and form the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 into a cell group. The first flipping mechanism 3 is located downstream of the grouping mechanism 2 along the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1. The first flipping mechanism 3 is configured to selectively flip the first cell 20 of a cell group. Along the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1, the pairing mechanism 5 is located downstream of the first flipping mechanism 3. The pairing mechanism 5 is configured to pair the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 of the battery cell group to form a paired group, wherein the paired group includes a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacent to each other. Along the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1, the second flipping mechanism 4 is located downstream of the pairing mechanism 5. The second flipping mechanism 4 is configured to selectively flip the first portion of the paired group. Along the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1, the rotation mechanism 6 is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism 4. The rotation mechanism 6 is configured to rotate the first portion or the second portion.

[0089] Here, along the conveying direction of the conveying line 1, the grouping mechanism 2, the first turning mechanism 3, the matching mechanism 5, the second turning mechanism 4 and the rotating mechanism 6 are sequentially arranged.

[0090] Exemplarily, the cell pairing system 10 includes a control device.

[0091] Here, the control device is used to control the operation of the grouping mechanism 2, the first flipping mechanism 3, the pairing mechanism 5, the second flipping mechanism 4, and the rotating mechanism 6. The control device may include, but is not limited to, at least one of an industrial computer, a programmable logic controller (PLC), and a host computer. The host computer may be, for example, a server, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or a smartphone.

[0092] Here, cell pairing includes cell two-tab pairing and cell four-tab pairing. Among them, two-tab pairing refers to the pairing between two cells, and four-tab pairing refers to the pairing between four cells.

[0093] Here, the specific types of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are not limited. For example, one of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 is an A battery cell, and the other is a B battery cell.

[0094] After the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 are loaded, the grouping mechanism 2 is used to receive the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 and group the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 into a battery cell group according to requirements.

[0095] There are various specific types of cell groups. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG2 , each cell group includes one first cell 20 and one second cell 30 . In this case, the cell group corresponds to a two-tab pairing. In other embodiments, as shown in FIG1 , each cell group includes two first cells 20 and two second cells 30 . In this case, the cell group corresponds to a four-tab pairing.

[0096] For example, the grouping mechanism 2 can adjust the distance between the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 as needed. By adjusting the distance between adjacent first battery cells 20 and the distance between adjacent second battery cells 30, subsequent pairing steps are facilitated.

[0097] For example, the grouping mechanism 2 can rotate the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 as needed. For example, when the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are supplied, the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt. The grouping mechanism 2 rotates the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 by 90 degrees so that the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, which is convenient for the subsequent pairing step.

[0098] It should be noted that the rotation mentioned here refers to rotation within the same plane, for example, rotation within a plane parallel to the horizontal plane. The first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are rotated by the grouping mechanism 2 to adjust the orientation of the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30, but the top and bottom orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 do not change (the top surface refers to the surface facing upward in the large surface, that is, the upper core surface, and the bottom surface refers to the surface in contact with the conveyor line 1 in the large surface, that is, the lower core surface).

[0099] The first flipping mechanism 3 is configured to selectively flip the first cell 20 of the cell group. For example, during the process of pairing two cell tabs, the first flipping mechanism 3 does not need to flip the first cell 20 of the cell group. During the process of pairing four cell tabs, the first flipping mechanism 3 needs to flip the first cell 20 of the cell group.

[0100] The second flipping mechanism 4 is configured to selectively flip the first portion of the pairing group. For example, during the pairing of two tabs in a battery cell, the second flipping mechanism 4 does not need to flip the first portion of the pairing group. During the pairing of four tabs in a battery cell, the second flipping mechanism 4 needs to flip the first portion of the pairing group.

[0101] It should be noted that the flipping of the first flipping mechanism 3 and the second flipping mechanism 4 can be used to adjust the top and bottom orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 , but the tab orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 remain unchanged.

[0102] Here, the rotating mechanism 6 is configured to rotate the first part or the second part so that the same tabs of the first part or the second part face each other to complete the pairing.

[0103] The rotating mechanism 6 is configured to rotate the first part or the second part, that is, the rotating mechanism 6 can be used to rotate the first part or the second part.

[0104] The cell pairing system 10 of the disclosed embodiment includes a conveyor line 1, a grouping mechanism 2, a first flipping mechanism 3, a pairing mechanism 5, a second flipping mechanism 4, and a rotating mechanism 6. The conveyor line 1 conveys the first and second cells 20, 30. The grouping mechanism 2 receives the first and second cells 20, 30 and groups them into a cell group. The cell group can include different numbers of first and second cells 20, 30 as needed. The first flipping mechanism 3 selectively flips the first cells 20 of the cell group as needed. The pairing mechanism 5 pairs the first and second cells 20, 30 of the cell group to form a paired group. The paired group includes a first and second adjacent sections. The second flipping mechanism 4 selectively flips the first section of the paired group as needed. The rotating mechanism 6 completes cell pairing by rotating the first or second section so that the same tabs of the first and second sections face each other. The cell pairing system 10 of the disclosed embodiment is compatible with both two-tab and four-tab cell pairing, reducing production costs and facilitating automation, thereby improving cell pairing efficiency.

[0105] In some embodiments, referring to FIG1 , each battery cell group includes two first battery cells 20 and two second battery cells 30 arranged along the conveying direction. The pairing mechanism 5 is configured to stack the two second battery cells 30 onto the two first battery cells 20 to form a first portion and a second portion. Alternatively, the two first battery cells 20 are stacked onto the two second battery cells 30 to form a first portion and a second portion. Both the first portion and the second portion include the stacked first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30.

[0106] Here, each battery cell group includes two first battery cells 20 and two second battery cells 30 , and this embodiment is a four-pole tab pairing of battery cells.

[0107] The pairing mechanism 5 is used to stack the two second battery cells 30 onto the two first battery cells 20 to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. Here, the first part and the second part are identical.

[0108] It can be understood that the pairing mechanism 5 is configured to stack the two first battery cells 20 onto the two second battery cells 30 respectively.

[0109] In this embodiment, the pairing mechanism 5 can be used to stack the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. The first part and the second part both include the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 stacked together. This is conducive to achieving the pairing of the four-pole ears of the battery cells.

[0110] When pairing the four tabs of the battery cell, the tabs of the first and second battery cells 20, 30 that overlap each other in the first part are aligned with the tabs of the first and second battery cells 20, 30 that overlap each other in the second part, and the tabs of the first and second battery cells 20, 30 that overlap each other are close to each other. In addition, the tabs of the second battery cells 30 that overlap each other are close to the tabs of the first battery cell 20, that is, the tabs of the first and second battery cells 20, 30 in the first part are close to each other, and the tabs between the first and second parts are aligned one by one. It can be understood, referring to Figure 6, that when the tabs are set at the head of the battery cell, they are not in the middle of the head of the battery cell, that is, the distances of the tabs relative to the two core surfaces of the battery cell are unequal. If the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 are close to the bottom surface (lower cell surface) of the cell, then before pairing, the first cell 20 needs to be flipped 180 degrees so that the tabs of the first cell 20 are close to the top surface (upper cell surface) of the cell. In this way, when the second cell 30 is stacked on the first cell 20, the tabs of the two will be close. Then, the first part or the second part is rotated 180 degrees by the rotating mechanism 6, so that the tabs of the first part are aligned with the tabs of the second part, and the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 in the first part are close to each other, and the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 in the second part are close to each other, completing the four-tab pairing of the cells.

[0111] In some embodiments, referring to Figures 1 and 2, the battery cell pairing system 10 further includes a gluing mechanism 7. The gluing mechanism 7 is configured to glue the first portion and the second portion.

[0112] The gluing mechanism 7 applies glue to the first and second parts of the paired group, specifically, the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 in the paired group with paired quad tabs. The gluing mechanism 7 is provided on the conveying path of the conveyor line 1. The paired group with paired quad tabs conveyed by the conveyor line 1 passes through the gluing mechanism 7, which applies glue to the paired group, so that the first and second parts of the paired group are fixed.

[0113] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 2 , each battery cell group includes a first battery cell 20 and a second battery cell 30 , and the pairing mechanism 5 is configured to transfer the second battery cell 30 to the downstream or upstream of the first battery cell 20 along the conveying direction.

[0114] Here, the pairing mechanism 5 may transfer the second battery cell 30 to the downstream of the first battery cell 20 along the conveying direction, or may transfer the second battery cell 30 to the upstream of the first battery cell 20 along the conveying direction.

[0115] When pairing the two tabs of the battery cell, the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are converted to be arranged along the conveying direction through the pairing mechanism 5 to achieve pairing and form a pairing group. The pairing group includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacent to each other, one of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 is the first part, and the other of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 is the second part.

[0116] In some embodiments, referring to Figures 1 to 2, the conveyor line 1 includes an incoming material conveyor line 11, a return conveyor line 12, and a discharge conveyor line 13 connected in sequence along the conveying direction. The conveying directions of the incoming material conveyor line 11 and the discharge conveyor line 13 are the same, and the conveying directions of the incoming material conveyor line 11 and the return conveyor line 12 are opposite.

[0117] Here, the grouping mechanism 2, the first turning mechanism 3 and the matching mechanism 5 can be sequentially arranged on the conveying path of the incoming material conveyor line 11. The gluing mechanism 7, the second turning mechanism 4 and the rotating mechanism 6 can be sequentially arranged on the conveying path of the unloading material conveyor line 13.

[0118] By providing the return conveyor line 12 connected between the incoming material conveyor line 11 and the unloading material conveyor line 13 , the occupied space of the cell pairing system 10 can be reduced and the structural compactness of the cell pairing system 10 can be improved.

[0119] In some embodiments, referring to Figures 1 to 2, the incoming material conveying line 11 includes a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, the first conveying area is configured to convey the first battery cell 20, and the second conveying area is configured to convey the second battery cell 30, wherein the first direction intersects with the conveying direction.

[0120] Here, the first direction intersecting the conveying direction means that the first direction is not parallel to the conveying direction. For example, the first direction and the conveying direction are perpendicular to each other.

[0121] The incoming material conveying line 11 is configured with a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction for conveying the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 respectively, which is beneficial for pairing the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 in subsequent steps.

[0122] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 2 , each battery cell group includes a first battery cell 20 and a second battery cell 30 , and the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 of the battery cell group are alternately arranged in a first direction.

[0123] Here, since the battery cell group may include one first battery cell 20 and one second battery cell 30, or two first battery cells 20 and two second battery cells 30, during the battery cell tab pairing process, there is an empty space in the first conveying area and the second conveying area in each battery cell group. In this way, by staggering the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 in the battery cell group in the first direction, it is convenient to pair the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 in the subsequent steps.

[0124] In some embodiments, the grouping mechanism 2 is configured to rotate the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 .

[0125] For example, the grouping mechanism 2 can rotate the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 as needed. For example, when the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are supplied, the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt. The grouping mechanism 2 rotates the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 by 90 degrees so that the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, which is convenient for the subsequent pairing step.

[0126] It should be noted that the rotation mentioned here refers to rotation within the same plane, for example, rotation within a plane parallel to the horizontal plane. The first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are rotated by the grouping mechanism 2 to adjust the orientation of the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30, but the top and bottom orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 do not change (the top surface refers to the surface facing upward in the large surface, that is, the upper core surface, and the bottom surface refers to the surface in contact with the conveyor line 1 in the large surface, that is, the lower core surface).

[0127] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the battery cell pairing system 10 further includes a loading mechanism 21 , which is configured to load the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 .

[0128] Exemplarily, the loading mechanism 21 is arranged at the starting end of the conveyor line 1 .

[0129] It should be noted that the loading mechanism 21 can be a whole, used to load the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 respectively. The loading mechanism 21 can also include a first loading unit and a second loading unit, the first loading unit is used to load the first battery cell 20, and the second loading unit is used to load the second battery cell 30.

[0130] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the battery cell pairing system 10 further includes a code scanning mechanism 8 , which is configured to scan the first battery cell 20 and / or the second battery cell 30 .

[0131] Here, the code scanning mechanism 8 can be used to scan the first battery cell 20 , can also be used to scan the second battery cell 30 , and can also be used to scan the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 .

[0132] The barcode scanning mechanism 8 is disposed on the conveying path of the conveyor line 1. The barcode scanning mechanism 8 is used to scan the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 after they have passed the appearance inspection, and identify the identification codes on the core surfaces of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 to facilitate production management of the subsequent pairing of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30. In this embodiment, the barcode scanning mechanism 8 can be a barcode scanning gun.

[0133] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the battery cell pairing system 10 further includes a buffer station 9 , which is configured to buffer unqualified first battery cells 20 and second battery cells 30 .

[0134] The buffer station 9 can be set on the conveying path of the incoming material conveyor line 11, so as to buffer the first battery cells 20 and second battery cells 30 that fail the appearance inspection or the code scanning after loading. It can also be set on the path of the unloading material conveyor line 13, so as to buffer the first battery cells 20 and second battery cells 30 that fail the glue application.

[0135] Specifically, the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 that fail the appearance inspection or the code scanning are transferred to the cache station 9. The first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 that fail the appearance inspection or the code scanning are processed off-site to make them meet the standards and then re-paired without stopping the machine for processing, thereby improving production efficiency.

[0136] The present disclosure also provides a battery production system, including a welding device, a film coating device, a shell insertion device, and a cell pairing system 10 according to any embodiment of the present disclosure. The welding device is configured to weld paired cells, the film coating device is configured to coat the welded cells with an insulating film, and the shell insertion device is configured to shell the cells coated with the insulating film.

[0137] Exemplarily, the battery production system may further include a welding device, which may weld the paired battery cells before inserting the cells into the shell. This may include welding the tabs of the battery cells to the adapters, and welding the adapters to the top cover.

[0138] Exemplarily, the battery production system may further include a coating device, which can coat the welded battery cells before they are placed in the shell. Here, an insulating film (such as Mylar film) is coated on the periphery of the battery cells.

[0139] The shell insertion device is configured to place the battery cell covered with the insulating film into the shell to realize the shell insertion process of the battery cell.

[0140] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for pairing battery cells, which is applied to a battery cell pairing system 10. The battery cell pairing system 10 is configured to pair a first battery cell 20 with a second battery cell 30 to form a battery cell. The battery cell pairing system 10 includes a control device, a conveyor line 1, a grouping mechanism 2, a first flipping mechanism 3, a pairing mechanism 5, a second flipping mechanism 4, and a rotation mechanism 6. The conveyor line 1 includes an incoming material conveyor line 11, which includes a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction. The first conveying area is configured to convey the first battery cell 20, and the second conveying area is configured to convey the second battery cell 30, wherein the first direction intersects the conveying direction.

[0141] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of an implementation flow of a method for pairing battery cells provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3 , the method for pairing battery cells includes the following steps S701 to S705:

[0142] Step S701 : in response to the first battery cell and the second battery cell arriving at the grouping mechanism, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to group the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery group.

[0143] Here, the control device is used to control the operation of the grouping mechanism 2, the first flipping mechanism 3, the pairing mechanism 5, the second flipping mechanism 4, and the rotating mechanism 6. The control device may include, but is not limited to, at least one of an industrial computer, a programmable logic controller (PLC), and a host computer. The host computer may be, for example, a server, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or a smartphone.

[0144] Here, cell pairing includes cell two-tab pairing and cell four-tab pairing.

[0145] After the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 are loaded, the grouping mechanism 2 is used to receive the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 and group the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 into a battery cell group according to requirements.

[0146] There are various specific types of cell groups. In some embodiments, each cell group includes one first cell 20 and one second cell 30. In this case, the cell group corresponds to a two-tab pairing. In other embodiments, each cell group includes two first cells 20 and two second cells 30. In this case, the cell group corresponds to a four-tab pairing.

[0147] For example, the grouping mechanism 2 can adjust the distance between the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 as needed. By adjusting the distance between adjacent first battery cells 20 and the distance between adjacent second battery cells 30, subsequent pairing steps are facilitated.

[0148] For example, the grouping mechanism 2 can rotate the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 as needed. For example, when the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are supplied, the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt. The grouping mechanism 2 rotates the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 by 90 degrees so that the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are placed parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, which is convenient for the subsequent pairing step.

[0149] It should be noted that the rotation here refers to rotation within the same plane, for example, rotation within a plane parallel to the horizontal plane. The first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 are rotated by the grouping mechanism 2 to adjust the orientation of the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30, but the top and bottom orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 do not change (the top surface refers to the surface facing upward in the large surface, that is, the upper core surface, and the bottom surface refers to the surface in contact with the conveyor line 1 in the large surface, that is, the lower core surface).

[0150] In step S702 , the control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group, wherein the first flipping mechanism is located downstream of the grouping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line.

[0151] The first flipping mechanism 3 is configured to selectively flip the first cell 20 of the cell group. For example, during the process of pairing two cell tabs, the first flipping mechanism 3 does not need to flip the first cell 20 of the cell group. During the process of pairing four cell tabs, the first flipping mechanism 3 needs to flip the first cell 20 of the cell group.

[0152] It should be noted that the flipping of the first flipping mechanism 3 can be used to adjust the top and bottom orientations of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 (the top surface refers to the surface facing upward in the large surface, that is, the upper core surface, and the bottom surface refers to the surface in contact with the conveyor line 1 in the large surface, that is, the lower core surface), but the orientation of the tabs of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 does not change.

[0153] In step S703, the control device controls the pairing mechanism to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, wherein the pairing group includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacent to each other. Along the conveying direction of the conveying line, the pairing mechanism is located downstream of the first flipping mechanism.

[0154] In step S704 , the control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group, and the second flipping mechanism is located downstream of the pairing mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line.

[0155] The second flipping mechanism 4 is configured to selectively flip the first portion of the pairing group. For example, during the pairing of two tabs in a battery cell, the second flipping mechanism 4 does not need to flip the first portion of the pairing group. During the pairing of four tabs in a battery cell, the second flipping mechanism 4 needs to flip the first portion of the pairing group.

[0156] Step S705 , the control device controls the rotating mechanism to rotate the first part or the second part to complete the pairing, and the rotating mechanism is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line.

[0157] Here, the rotating mechanism 6 is configured to rotate the first part or the second part so that the same tabs of the first part or the second part face each other to complete the pairing.

[0158] The rotating mechanism 6 is configured to rotate the first part or the second part, that is, the rotating mechanism 6 can be used to rotate the first part or the second part.

[0159] In the battery cell pairing method of the disclosed embodiment, a conveyor line 1 conveys a first battery cell 20 and a second battery cell 30, a grouping mechanism 2 receives the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30, and groups the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 into a battery cell group. The battery cell group can include different numbers of first battery cells 20 and second battery cells 30 as required. A first flipping mechanism 3 can selectively flip the first battery cell 20 of the battery cell group as required. A pairing mechanism 5 pairs the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 of the battery cell group to form a paired group, which includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacently. A second flipping mechanism 4 can selectively flip the first part of the paired group as required, and a rotating mechanism 6 completes the battery cell pairing by rotating the first part or the second part so that the same tabs of the first part and the second part are opposite each other. The battery cell pairing method of the disclosed embodiment can achieve pairing of two-tab and four-tab batteries, reducing production costs and facilitating automation, thereby improving battery cell pairing efficiency.

[0160] In some embodiments, referring to FIG1 , the control device controls the grouping mechanism 2 to group the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 into a battery cell group, including: the grouping mechanism 2 groups the two first battery cells 20 and the two second battery cells 30 into a battery cell group.

[0161] Here, each battery cell group includes two first battery cells 20 and two second battery cells 30 , and this embodiment is a four-pole tab pairing of battery cells.

[0162] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 1 , the control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism 3 to flip the first battery cell 20 of the battery cell group, including: the control device controls the first flipping mechanism 3 to flip the first battery cell 20 of the battery cell group 180°.

[0163] Here, during the pairing process of the four tabs of the battery cell, the tab of the first battery cell 20 is close to the bottom surface (lower core surface) of the battery cell. Before pairing, it is necessary to flip the first battery cell 20 180 degrees so that the tab of the first battery cell 20 is close to the top surface (upper core surface) of the battery cell, which is conducive to the pairing in subsequent steps.

[0164] Of course, in other embodiments, if the tab of the second battery cell 30 is close to the bottom surface (lower core surface) of the battery cell, the second battery cell 30 needs to be flipped 180 degrees before pairing so that the tab of the second battery cell 30 is close to the top surface (upper core surface) of the battery cell.

[0165] In some embodiments, referring to Figure 1, the control device controls the pairing mechanism 5 to pair the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, and the pairing group includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacent to each other, including: the control device controls the pairing mechanism 5 to be configured to stack the two first battery cells 20 onto the two second battery cells 30 respectively to form a first part and a second part, and the first part and the second part both include the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 stacked together.

[0166] The pairing mechanism 5 is used to stack the two second battery cells 30 onto the two first battery cells 20 to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. Here, the first part and the second part are identical.

[0167] It can be understood that the pairing mechanism 5 is configured to stack the two first battery cells 20 onto the two second battery cells 30 respectively.

[0168] In this embodiment, the pairing mechanism 5 can be used to stack the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 to form a stacked battery cell group. The stacked battery cell group includes a first part and a second part. The first part and the second part both include the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 stacked together. This is conducive to achieving the pairing of the four-pole ears of the battery cells.

[0169] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 1 , the control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism 4 to flip the first portion of the pairing group, including: the control device controls the second flipping mechanism 4 to flip the first portion of the pairing group 180°.

[0170] Here, the pole ears of the first part and the second part are oriented in the same direction. In order to subsequently rotate the first part or the second part 180 degrees through the rotating mechanism 6 so that the pole ears of the first part are opposite to the pole ears of the second part, it is necessary to flip the first part of the pairing group 180° by controlling the second flipping mechanism 4 before rotation.

[0171] Please refer to Figures 1 to 6. When pairing the four tabs of the battery cells, the tabs of the first and second cells 20, 30 that overlap each other in the first section are aligned with the tabs of the first and second cells 20, 30 that overlap each other in the second section, and the tabs of the first and second cells 20, 30 that overlap each other are close to each other. In addition, the tabs of the second cells 30 that overlap each other are close to the tabs of the first cell 20. That is, the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 in the first section are close to each other, and the tabs between the first and second sections are aligned one by one. It is understandable that, as shown in Figure 6, when the tabs are set at the head of the battery cell, they are not in the middle of the head of the battery cell. In other words, the distances of the tabs relative to the two core surfaces of the battery cell are unequal. If the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 are close to the bottom surface (lower cell surface) of the cell, then before pairing, the first cell 20 needs to be flipped 180 degrees so that the tabs of the first cell 20 are close to the top surface (upper cell surface) of the cell. In this way, when the second cell 30 is stacked on the first cell 20, the tabs of the two will be close. However, at this time, the tabs of the first part and the second part are distributed in the same direction. By controlling the second flipping mechanism 4 to flip the first part of the pairing group 180°, the tabs of the first part and the tabs of the second part are in the same direction, but the distribution of the positive and negative tabs is opposite. Then, the first part or the second part is rotated 180 degrees by the rotating mechanism 6, so that the tabs of the first part are directly opposite to the tabs of the second part, and the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 in the first part are close to each other, and the tabs of the first cell 20 and the second cell 30 in the second part are close to each other, completing the four-tab pairing of the cells.

[0172] In some embodiments, referring to FIG1 , after the pairing mechanism 5 pairs the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, the battery cell pairing method further includes: the control device controls the gluing mechanism 7 to glue the first part and the second part.

[0173] The gluing mechanism 7 applies glue to the first and second parts of the paired group, specifically, the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 in the paired group with paired quad tabs. The gluing mechanism 7 is provided on the conveying path of the conveyor line 1. The paired group with paired quad tabs conveyed by the conveyor line 1 passes through the gluing mechanism 7, which applies glue to the paired group, so that the first and second parts of the paired group are fixed.

[0174] In some embodiments, the control device controls the grouping mechanism 2 to group the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 into a battery cell group, including: the grouping mechanism 2 groups one first battery cell 20 and one second battery cell 30 into a battery cell group.

[0175] Here, each battery cell group includes a first battery cell 20 and a second battery cell 30. At this time, the battery cell group corresponds to a pair of battery cell tabs.

[0176] In some embodiments, referring to FIG2 , the grouping mechanism 2 groups a first battery cell 20 and a second battery cell 30 into a battery cell group, including: the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 of the battery cell group are arranged along a first direction and staggered in the first direction, and the first direction intersects with the conveying direction.

[0177] Here, since the battery cell group may include one first battery cell 20 and one second battery cell 30, or two first battery cells 20 and two second battery cells 30, during the battery cell tab pairing process, there is an empty space in the first conveying area and the second conveying area in each battery cell group. In this way, by staggering the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 in the battery cell group in the first direction, it is convenient to pair the first battery cells 20 and the second battery cells 30 in the subsequent steps.

[0178] Please refer to Figure 4. The method for pairing the four-pole tabs of a battery cell includes:

[0179] Step 101: A control device controls a loading mechanism to load a first battery cell and a second battery cell simultaneously;

[0180] Exemplarily, one of the first battery cell 20 and the second battery cell 30 is an A battery cell, and the other is a B battery cell.

[0181] Here, the states of the first battery cell 20 facing up and facing up are represented by A1 and A2 respectively; the states of the second battery cell 30 facing up and facing up are represented by B1 and B2 respectively.

[0182] Step 102: The control device controls the grouping mechanism to receive two first battery cells and two second battery cells each time, and drives the two first battery cells and the two second battery cells to rotate 90 degrees to form a battery cell group;

[0183] Step 103: The control device controls the code scanning mechanism to scan the first battery cell and the second battery cell;

[0184] Step 104: The control device controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group 180 degrees so that the tab of the first battery cell is close to the top surface (upper core surface) of the battery cell. In this way, when the second battery cell is stacked on the first battery cell, the tabs of the two battery cells are close to each other.

[0185] Step 105: The control device controls the pairing mechanism to stack the two second battery cells onto the two first battery cells to form a first portion and a second portion, or to stack the two first battery cells onto the two second battery cells to form a first portion and a second portion, wherein both the first portion and the second portion include the first battery cell and the second battery cell stacked together.

[0186] Here, A1B2 means that A1 is above B2.

[0187] Step 106: The control device controls the gluing mechanism to glue the first part and the second part;

[0188] Step 107: The control device controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part or the second part of the paired group so that the tabs of the first part and the tabs of the second part are oriented in the same direction, but the distribution of the positive tabs and the negative tabs is opposite;

[0189] Here, B2A1 means that B2 is above A1.

[0190] Step 108: The control device controls the rotating mechanism to rotate the first part or the second part so that the tabs of the first part are directly opposite to the tabs of the second part, and the tabs of the first battery cell in the first part are close to the tabs of the second battery cell, and the tabs of the first battery cell in the second part are close to the tabs of the second battery cell, thereby completing the pairing of the four tabs of the battery cells.

[0191] Please refer to Figure 5. The method for pairing the battery cell and the two-electrode tabs includes:

[0192] Step 201: A control device controls a loading mechanism to load a first battery cell and a second battery cell simultaneously;

[0193] Step 202: The control device controls the grouping mechanism to receive one first battery cell and one second battery cell each time, and drives the first battery cell and the second battery cell to rotate 90° to form a battery cell group;

[0194] Step 203: The control device controls the code scanning mechanism to scan the first battery cell and the second battery cell;

[0195] Step 204: The control device controls the pairing mechanism to transfer the second battery cell to the downstream or upstream of the first battery cell along the conveying direction to form a first portion and a second portion;

[0196] Step 205: The control device controls the rotating mechanism to rotate the first part or the second part so that the tabs of the first part are aligned with the tabs of the second part, thereby completing the pairing of the two tabs of the battery cell.

[0197] In the description of the present disclosure, the descriptions with reference to the terms "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments", "in other embodiments", "in yet other embodiments", or "exemplary" etc. mean that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the embodiments of the present disclosure. In the present disclosure, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in a suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples. In addition, those skilled in the art may combine different embodiments or examples described in the present disclosure and features of different embodiments or examples, unless they are mutually inconsistent.

[0198] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various modifications and variations of the present disclosure are possible. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, or improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present disclosure are intended to be within the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Industrial Applicability

[0199] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a battery cell pairing system, a battery production system, and a battery cell pairing method. The battery cell pairing system includes a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first flipping mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second flipping mechanism, and a rotating mechanism. The conveyor line is configured to convey a first battery cell and a second battery cell. The grouping mechanism is configured to receive the first battery cell and the second battery cell and combine the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group. The first flipping mechanism is configured to selectively flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group. The pairing mechanism is configured to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, wherein the pairing group includes a first part and a second part arranged adjacent to each other. The second flipping mechanism is configured to selectively flip the first part of the pairing group. The rotating mechanism is configured to rotate the first part or the second part. The system is compatible with both two-electrode and four-electrode pairing of batteries, reduces production costs, and facilitates automation, thereby improving the efficiency of battery cell pairing.

Claims

1. A battery cell pairing system, configured to pair a first battery cell and a second battery cell to form a battery cell, the battery cell pairing system comprising: A conveyor line, the conveyor line comprising an incoming material conveyor line, the incoming material conveyor line comprising a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, the first conveying area being configured to convey the first battery cell, and the second conveying area being configured to convey the second battery cell, wherein the first direction intersects a conveying direction of the conveyor line; a grouping mechanism, configured to receive the first battery cell and the second battery cell, and group the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group; a first flipping mechanism, located downstream of the grouping mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, and configured to selectively flip a first battery cell of the battery cell group; a pairing mechanism, located downstream of the first flipping mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, the pairing mechanism being configured to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, the paired group comprising a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacently; a second flipping mechanism, located downstream of the pairing mechanism along a conveying direction of the conveying line, the second flipping mechanism being configured to selectively flip the first portion of the pairing group; A rotating mechanism is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line, and the rotating mechanism is configured to rotate the first part or the second part.

2. The cell pairing system according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the battery cell groups includes two first battery cells arranged along the conveying direction and two second battery cells arranged along the conveying direction. The pairing mechanism is configured to stack the two second battery cells onto the two first battery cells to form a first part and a second part, or to stack the two first battery cells onto the two second battery cells to form a first part and a second part, and the first part and the second part both include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together.

3. The cell pairing system according to claim 2, wherein: The battery cell pairing system further includes a gluing mechanism configured to glue the first part and the second part.

4. The cell pairing system according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the pairing mechanism is configured to transfer the second battery cell to a downstream or upstream position relative to the first battery cell along the conveying direction.

5. The battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The conveying line includes the incoming material conveying line, the return conveying line and the unloading conveying line connected in sequence along the conveying direction. The conveying direction of the incoming material conveying line is the same as that of the unloading conveying line, and the conveying direction of the incoming material conveying line is opposite to that of the return conveying line.

6. The cell pairing system according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are alternately arranged in the first direction.

7. The battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The grouping mechanism is configured to rotate the first battery core and the second battery core.

8. The battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The battery cell pairing system further includes a loading mechanism configured to load the first battery cell and the second battery cell.

9. The battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein: The battery cell pairing system further includes a code scanning mechanism configured to scan the first battery cell and / or the second battery cell.

10. The battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: The battery cell pairing system further includes a buffer station configured to buffer unqualified first battery cells and second battery cells.

11. A battery production system, comprising a welding device, a film wrapping device, a shell insertion device, and the battery cell pairing system according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the welding device is configured to weld paired battery cells, the film wrapping device is configured to wrap the welded battery cells with an insulating film, and the shell insertion device is configured to shell the battery cells wrapped with the insulating film.

12. A method for pairing battery cells, applied to a battery cell pairing system, wherein the battery cell pairing system is configured to pair a first battery cell with a second battery cell to form the battery cell, the battery cell pairing system comprising a control device, a conveyor line, a grouping mechanism, a first flipping mechanism, a pairing mechanism, a second flipping mechanism, and a rotating mechanism, the conveyor line comprising an incoming material conveyor line, the incoming material conveyor line comprising a first conveying area and a second conveying area arranged side by side along a first direction, the first conveying area being configured to convey the first battery cell, and the second conveying area being configured to convey the second battery cell, wherein: The first direction intersects with the conveying direction of the conveying line, and the pairing method of the battery cells includes: In response to the first battery cell and the second battery cell arriving at the grouping mechanism, the control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group; The control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group, and the first flipping mechanism is located downstream of the grouping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line; The control device controls the pairing mechanism to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, wherein the paired group includes a first portion and a second portion disposed adjacent to each other, and the pairing mechanism is located downstream of the first flipping mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line; The control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group, and the second flipping mechanism is located downstream of the pairing mechanism along the conveying direction of the conveying line; The control device controls the rotating mechanism to rotate the first part or the second part to complete the pairing. Along the conveying direction of the conveying line, the rotating mechanism is located downstream of the second flipping mechanism.

13. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 12, wherein: The control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including: The grouping mechanism groups the two first battery cells and the two second battery cells into a battery cell group.

14. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 13, wherein: The control device selectively controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group, including: The control device controls the first flipping mechanism to flip the first battery cell of the battery cell group by 180°.

15. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 14, wherein: The control device controls the pairing mechanism to pair the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a pairing group, wherein the pairing group includes a first part and a second part that are adjacently arranged, including: The control device controls the pairing mechanism to be configured to stack two first battery cells onto two second battery cells respectively to form a first part and a second part, wherein the first part and the second part both include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together.

16. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 15, wherein: The battery cell pairing system further includes a gluing mechanism. After the pairing mechanism pairs the first battery cell and the second battery cell of the battery cell group to form a paired group, the battery cell pairing method further includes: The control device controls the gluing mechanism to glue the first part and the second part.

17. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 16, wherein: The control device selectively controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group, including: The control device controls the second flipping mechanism to flip the first part of the pairing group by 180°.

18. The method for pairing battery cells according to any one of claims 12 to 17, wherein: The control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including: The grouping mechanism groups one of the first battery cells and one of the second battery cells into a battery cell group.

19. The method for pairing battery cells according to claim 18, wherein: The grouping mechanism combines one of the first battery cell and one of the second battery cell into a battery cell group, comprising: The first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are arranged along a first direction and staggered in the first direction, and the first direction intersects the conveying direction.

20. The method for pairing battery cells according to any one of claims 12 to 19, wherein: The control device controls the grouping mechanism to form the first battery cell and the second battery cell into a battery cell group, including: Each of the battery cell groups includes two first battery cells arranged along the conveying direction and two second battery cells arranged along the conveying direction, and the pairing mechanism is configured to stack two second battery cells onto two first battery cells to form a first part and a second part, or stack two first battery cells onto two second battery cells to form a first part and a second part, wherein both the first part and the second part include the first battery cells and the second battery cells stacked together; or Each of the battery cell groups includes one first battery cell and one second battery cell, and the first battery cells and the second battery cells of the battery cell group are alternately arranged in the first direction.

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