Secondary Battery Appearance Inspection With Multi-Battery 360° Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional inspection apparatuses for cylindrical secondary batteries have low inspection efficiency due to the use of one or two cameras to inspect the lateral surface of a single battery.
Innovation Solution
An appearance inspection apparatus that uses a 360-degree lateral image of a secondary battery obtained with light emitted in various combinations to inspect the outer appearance, while picking up and rotating multiple secondary batteries simultaneously, and also captures top and bottom images of the battery while it is loaded in a tray.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If one or two cameras are used to inspect the lateral surface of a single battery, then the inspection apparatus structure is simple, but the inspection efficiency is low
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple cameras are merged into a single inspection system to simultaneously capture images of multiple batteries. The apparatus combines several imaging devices arranged at different positions and angles to inspect multiple batteries in parallel, thereby improving inspection efficiency while maintaining reasonable system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The inspection system transitions from a single-camera single-battery configuration to a multi-camera multi-battery spatial arrangement. By utilizing three-dimensional spatial positioning of cameras and batteries, the system achieves simultaneous inspection of multiple batteries from different angles, resolving the contradiction between efficiency and complexity
2Productivity
If multiple batteries are picked up and rotated simultaneously for inspection, then the inspection efficiency increases, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The handling mechanism is segmented into modular components that can independently grip and rotate individual batteries. Each battery is handled separately by dedicated grippers and rotation mechanisms, allowing simultaneous processing of multiple batteries without requiring a completely complex integrated system
Solution Approach 2:
The handling mechanism uses universal grippers and rotation devices that can accommodate multiple batteries with the same specifications. These multi-functional components perform both gripping and rotation functions for different batteries, reducing overall device complexity while enabling simultaneous inspection of multiple batteries
3Productivity
If top and bottom images are captured while the battery is loaded in a tray, then the inspection process is sped up, but the positioning precision requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The batteries are pre-positioned in standardized trays with fixed locations before inspection. This preliminary arrangement ensures that each battery is already at the correct position and orientation, allowing the inspection system to capture top and bottom images quickly without requiring high-precision real-time positioning during the actual inspection process
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is an appearance inspection apparatus for a secondary battery, which simultaneously obtains laterals image by picking up a plurality of secondary batteries loaded in a tray, and then simultaneously obtains top and bottom images of the secondary batteries by returning the plurality of inspected secondary batteries back to the tray and transporting the tray.