Battery Cell Housing Laser Welding Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The expensive and complex process of welding a battery cell housing cover to a shell, particularly in ensuring precise positioning for a tight seal, especially when using laser beam welding, which requires careful alignment within a limited focal range.
Innovation Solution
A battery cell housing design featuring a housing shell and cover made of the same material, with strategically positioned connecting surfaces that allow for spatial separation during welding, enabling precise laser-welding by providing a planar contact and maintaining the desired depth effect of the laser beam, while also incorporating inclined surfaces for improved positioning and material-saving design elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If laser beam welding is used to weld the housing cover to the housing shell, then welding precision and sealing quality are improved, but the complexity of positioning and alignment increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by providing positioning protrusions on the housing shell and corresponding positioning recesses on the housing cover before the welding process. These features are pre-formed during molding to establish precise alignment of the connecting surfaces before laser beam welding begins, eliminating the need for complex positioning fixtures or manual alignment during welding.
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning protrusions and recesses act as intermediaries between the housing shell and housing cover. These features mediate the alignment process by providing mechanical guidance that ensures the connecting surfaces are properly positioned within the laser beam's limited focal range, simplifying the overall positioning system.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the housing cover and housing shell are made of different materials, then design flexibility is improved, but welding quality and sealing reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies homogeneity by specifying that both the housing shell and housing cover be made from the same thermoplastic material. This material uniformity ensures compatible melting and bonding characteristics during laser beam welding, creating reliable welds with consistent sealing quality. The connecting surfaces are designed with uniform material composition to facilitate homogeneous melting and fusion during the welding process.
3Volume of moving object
If the connecting surfaces are positioned close to each other for compact design, then housing compactness is improved, but laser beam accessibility and welding quality worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dimensionality change by designing the connecting surfaces to extend in the vertical direction (thickness direction) rather than only in the horizontal plane. The connecting surfaces have a vertical extent that allows the laser beam to access and weld across the interface, while the overall housing footprint remains compact. This vertical arrangement of connecting surfaces enables laser beam penetration and welding in a space-efficient configuration.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Simplifies the handling and production of battery cell housings by allowing for precise and efficient welding of the connecting surfaces, ensuring a tight seal and reducing material usage while maintaining structural stability.
Implementation Method 1
it is necessary to ensure the precise positioning of the housing cover on the housing shell before or during welding, in particular if the parts to be welded together are joined by laser beam welding within a highly limited focal range
Implementation Method 2
a resistance heating element is interposed between the cover and the housing shell. By applying a voltage to the resistance heating element, it is possible to weld the housing cover and the housing shell together
Data Source
AI summary
A battery cell housing includes a housing shell and a housing cover. A bearing surface and a first connecting surface separate thereto are present on the housing shell (16) on at least two mutually facing side walls or on all side. A contact surface on the housing cover is associated with each bearing surface and a second connecting surface on the housing cover is associated with the first connecting surface. The relative position of the second connecting surface and of the contact surface is adapted to the relative position of the bearing surface and of the first connecting surface. The contact surface and the second connecting surface can thus be spaced apart in the vertical direction (H) and/or the second connecting surface is present on an edge side strip extending downwards in the vertical direction (H) to a bottom of the housing shell.