Partitioned Mold Assembly for Battery Strap Casting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery strap and post cast-on machines are inefficient in reducing thermal energy input and cycle time, leading to increased costs and material usage, while maintaining reliability and quality of electrical connections in large batteries.
Innovation Solution
A partitioned mold assembly with temperature-controlled segments, where the manifold and central segments are maintained at elevated temperatures to keep molten metal fluid, and the mold cavity segment is cooled to solidify the metal, reducing the amount of molten metal needed and thermal energy input.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the complete mold assembly is cooled to solidify molten metal, then the metal solidifies reliably, but the cycle time increases and thermal energy input increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mold assembly is divided into multiple independently controllable segments: a first segment (mold cavity) maintained at a first temperature and a second segment (flow channel) maintained at a second temperature. This segmentation allows different parts of the mold to be at different temperatures simultaneously, enabling selective cooling of the cavity while keeping the flow channel warm to maintain metal fluidity, thereby reducing overall cycle time while ensuring reliable solidification in the cavity.
Solution Approach 2:
Different segments of the mold are assigned different temperature characteristics tailored to their specific functions. The mold cavity segment is cooled to promote rapid solidification of the metal in the desired location, while the flow channel segment is kept warmer to prevent premature solidification and maintain metal flow. This local differentiation of thermal properties optimizes both solidification reliability and cycle time.
2Ease of manufacture
If the complete mold assembly is heated to maintain metal fluidity, then the metal flows freely, but the thermal energy input increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mold is segmented into a first segment (mold cavity) and a second segment (flow channel) with independent temperature control. The flow channel segment is heated to maintain metal fluidity for easy flow into the cavity, while the mold cavity segment is cooled to promote solidification. This segmentation eliminates the need to heat the entire mold assembly, significantly reducing thermal energy input while maintaining ease of metal flow where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
Thermal energy is applied locally only where needed for metal flow (the flow channel segment), rather than heating the entire mold. The cavity segment is cooled to promote solidification. This localized thermal management reduces overall energy consumption while ensuring metal flows easily into the cavity when required.
3Reliability
If more molten metal is used to ensure proper filling, then the casting is reliable, but the material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The temperature-controlled segmentation allows precise control over metal solidification timing and location. By cooling the mold cavity segment while keeping the flow channel warm, the metal is guided to flow only where needed and solidifies reliably in the cavity without requiring excessive amounts of metal. This eliminates waste from premature solidification in the flow channel while ensuring complete filling of the cavity.
Solution Approach 2:
The temperature parameters of different mold segments are optimized to control metal behavior. The flow channel is maintained at a higher temperature to keep metal fluid and prevent premature solidification, while the cavity is cooled to promote reliable solidification. This parameter optimization allows using minimal necessary metal volume while ensuring casting reliability through controlled solidification timing.
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
This approach significantly reduces cycle time, material usage, and thermal energy input, resulting in cost savings and improved efficiency in battery strap manufacturing with enhanced reliability and quality of connections.
Implementation Method 1
a coolant jacket in contact with the material comprising the second temperature controlled segment and for providing cooling to the underside of the second segment bottom thereby to cool the bottom mold cavity surface and the opposed end walls, to solidify molten metal flowing in the mold cavity
Implementation Method 2
a thermal energy input means for providing thermal energy to the first and third temperature controlled segments, including the first and second mold cavity side walls, to input at least a predetermined minimum amount of thermal energy into the mold cavity
Implementation Method 3
contact of the chilled water with the mold cavity walls chills the molten lead so as to cause the molten lead to solidify
Data Source
AI summary
A dual temperature mold assembly (100) for maintaining a mold cavity (12,,102) used in a cast on strap process at two different temperatures facilitates the removal of the solidified strap (70, 170) after the molten metal is solidified. The mold assembly (100) includes a mold cavity (12) having walls (121, 132, 142, 144, 162) attached to different mold assembly segments (110, 130, 140, 160) that are heated or cooled by thermal energy input and coolant processes which can maintain the mold cavities (12) at different temperatures, so that molten metal (98) around the battery plate lugs (44, 46) in a mold cavity segment (140) is solidified while the side walls (132, 162) of the mold cavity are exposed to at least one adjacent heated segment (130, 160) to provide thermal energy thereinto, resulting in a reduction of the amount of molten metal (98) necessary for a cast on strap (70, 170), and reducing the amount of thermal energy input into the process for manufacturing the straps (70, 170).