Cell Stack Conveying With Dynamic Vehicle Routing for Reliable Output

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current battery cell production facilities face limitations in production output due to cyclic movements and energy inefficiencies, leading to delays and reduced reliability in producing cell stacks, with no known solutions to address these issues without compromising production speed.

Innovation Solution

A conveying facility with individually controllable transport vehicles and transfer stations, equipped with cell stacking apparatuses, allows for precise control of movement speed and route to coordinate the arrival of cell stacks, ensuring reliable delivery and compensating for delays, thereby enhancing system reliability and production efficiency.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If cyclic movements and discontinuous operations are used in production facilities, then device complexity is reduced and ease of operation is improved, but productivity is limited and loss of time increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduction outputVSAvoidproduction delays

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements continuous movement of transport vehicles along a closed-loop track, eliminating cyclic start-stop operations. Multiple transport vehicles operate simultaneously in sequence, ensuring continuous material flow and stacking operations, which resolves the contradiction by maintaining uninterrupted production flow while managing system complexity through standardized vehicle design

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

Solution Approach 2:

The control system dynamically adjusts the operation of individual transport vehicles based on real-time production needs, allowing flexible speed variations and positioning while maintaining overall continuous flow. This dynamic control enables the system to adapt to varying production demands without interrupting the continuous operation, thereby increasing productivity while minimizing delays

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

2Productivity

If transport vehicles move at higher speeds to increase productivity, then production output is improved, but reliability decreases due to delayed coordination and arrival of cell stacks

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduction outputVSAvoiddelivery reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The control system continuously monitors the position and status of each transport vehicle and adjusts their operation in real-time. This feedback mechanism ensures that even when vehicles move at varying speeds, their arrivals at transfer stations are coordinated, maintaining reliable delivery of cell stacks while allowing for high overall productivity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The control system plans and coordinates the movement of multiple transport vehicles in advance, pre-positioning them along the track to ensure timely arrivals at transfer stations. This preliminary coordination allows vehicles to move at higher speeds while still maintaining reliable delivery schedules, resolving the contradiction between speed and reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Productivity

If multiple transport vehicles are used to increase productivity, then production output is improved, but device complexity increases due to coordination requirements

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduction outputVSAvoidcontrol system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The control system manages multiple transport vehicles as independent but coordinated units, each with standardized control protocols. This segmentation approach allows the system to handle complex multi-vehicle coordination through modular, repeatable control patterns, increasing productivity while managing complexity through standardization

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

All transport vehicles use the same standardized design and control interface, allowing a single control system architecture to manage any number of vehicles. This universality reduces the complexity increase that would normally accompany multiple vehicles, as the same control logic applies to each vehicle regardless of the total number in the system

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS20250002261A1Conveying Facility for Conveying Cell Stacks Formed by Segments for the Energy Cell-Producing Industry, Corresponding Cell Stack Production System, and Method for Providing Cell Stacks of this Kind

Publication Date: 2025.01.02 KORBER TECHNOLOGIES GMBH

AI summary

Conveying facility for conveying cell stacks formed by segments for the energy cell-producing industry, comprising several transport vehicles which can be moved individually and are each equipped to transport a cell stack, wherein a pick-up region is provided which has at least two transfer stations at which the cell stacks are provided to be picked up by the transport vehicles or at which the segments are stacked onto the transport vehicles to form cell stacks, wherein each transfer station comprises its own cell stacking apparatus which is equipped to combine the segments into cell stacks having a pre-defined cell stack height; a delivery region which is spatially distanced from the pick-up region is provided, in which delivery region the cell stack received in the pick-up region is removed from the transport vehicle; and a control device is provided which is equipped to individually control and/or regulate the movement speed and/or the movement route of the transport vehicles loaded with the cell stacks between the pick-up region and the delivery region.