Patent Application
20170232478
The present disclosure relates to the field of lithium ion battery, and particularly relates to an automatic weighing and sorting apparatus for battery electrode sheets.
Lithium-ion battery based on stack technology has relied on die-cutting machines to produce electrode sheets. The traditional die-cutting machine comprises an automatic volume retract device, a servo pulling device, a driving system, a photoelectric sensing and automatic correction device, and an infrared automatic safety sensor.
After the electrode sheets are produced by the die-cutting machine, the sheets must be manually weighed and sorted. This process, however, is time-consuming, inefficient, and prone to cause damage to the electrode sheets from manually handling the electrode sheets.
It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, where appropriate, reference numerals have been repeated among the different figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. In addition, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments described herein. However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments described herein can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the related relevant feature being described. Also, the description is not to be considered as limiting the scope of the embodiments described herein.
With reference to
Referring also to
The suction cup 11 can have a surface with a plurality of micropores 111 formed on the surface to grip the battery electrode sheet. In one example, the micropores 111 appear as microscopic craters functioning as micro suction cups capable of sticking onto smooth surfaces without adhesive. Thus, the plurality of micropores 111 can be used to conveniently adhere to the plurality of battery electrode sheets. Furthermore, the material of the suction cup 11 can aid in adhering to and gripping the battery electrode sheets. The micropores can be through holes. In one example, the through holes can be connected to a gas tube, and using gas to generate attraction force to attract and grip the battery electrode sheets through the through hole. Thus, the specific surface area of the plurality of micropores 111 can be increased, and the adsorption force of the plurality of battery electrode sheets can also be increased. The adsorbed pressure can be relatively reduced in order to reduce the surface deformation of the plurality of battery electrode sheets during the adsorption process, and improve the pass rate of the battery electrode sheets. In one embodiment, the suction device 10 comprises three suction cups 11 to draw three battery electrode sheets simultaneously.
The suction device 10 maybe an optional device. Instead, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be directly placed on the conveying device 20 and delivered to the weighing device 30 via the conveying device 20.
As shown in
The second guide rail 22 comprises a third end and a fourth end, and the third end of the second guide rail 22 is connected to the second end of the first guide rail 21, in order to receive the plurality of battery electrode sheets from the first guide rail 21. The second guide rail 22 is perpendicular to the first guide rail 21, in order to place the battery electrode sheets from the first guide rail 21 onto the second guide rail 22 in a single line of battery electrode sheets. Thus, the battery electrode sheets are transferred from the second guide rail 22 onto the weighing device 30 in series. However, it is understood that the first guide rail 21 and the second guide rail 22 can be formed at an angle, so long as the plurality of battery electrode sheets on the first guide rail 21 is sequentially transferred to the second guide rail 22. Thus, the battery electrode sheets can be weighed one by one, and the efficiency can be improved. In one embodiment, height of the second guide rail 22 exhibits a tendency to decrease from the third end to the fourth end in the conveying direction. A slope angle between a transfer surface of the second guide rail 22 and the horizontal plane is in a range from about 150° to about 170°. With a gentle slope angle of the second guide rail 22, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be conveniently transferred to the weighing device 30, and the conveying process can be relaxed to achieve a soft landing, which reduces the likelihood of damaging the plurality of battery electrode sheets.
The weighing device 30 is located adjacent to but spaced from the fourth end of the second guide rail 22. Thus, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be safely transferred from the second guide rail 22 to the weighing device 30. Furthermore, a weighing surface of the weighing device 30 can be at a lower altitude or height than the conveying surface of the second guide rail 22, as discussed in detail below. Therefore, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be smoothly transferred to the second guide rail 22 under the transmission of the second guide rail and the gravity of the battery electrode sheet. The weighing device 30 can be spaced from the conveying device 20 at a distance of about 1 mm to about 2 mm. Specifically, the distance between the weighing device 30 and the fourth end of the second guide rail 22 can range from about 1 mm to about 2 mm.
In one embodiment, a height difference between transfer surface of the second guide rail 22 and weighing surface of the weighing device 30 can range from about 1 mm to about 10 mm. The height difference between the second guide rail 22 and the weighing device 30 allows the plurality of battery electrode sheets to smoothly and automatically transfer from the transfer surface of the second guide rail 22 to the weighing face of the weighing device 30. The battery electrode sheet can transfer to a central portion of the weighing surface the weighing device 30. Thus, the accurate weighing and the accurate positioning can be improved. Furthermore, the weighing device 30 can further comprise an induction positioning device (not shown) for positioning and fixing the plurality of battery electrode sheets on the weighing surface. In one embodiment, the weighing device 30 can be a balance scale with an accuracy of one ten thousandth. Thus the accuracy of the weight can be dramatically improved, and the consistency of the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be improved.
In one embodiment, the sorting device 40 comprises a column guide 41, a bracket 42, a microporous suction cup 43, a rotation device 44, and an automatic control device 45. The rotation device 44 is capable of rotating in a counterclockwise or clockwise direction, in order to select the place path of the battery electrode sheet. The column guide 41 is located on the angle rotation device 44, and can be rotated with the rotation device 44. The bracket 42 can be placed on an outer surface of the column guide 41. In one embodiment, a first end of the bracket 42 is connected to the rotation device 44 and a second end extends toward the weighing device 30. Furthermore, the extending direction can be parallel to the weighing surface, and the second end suspended above the weighing surface. The microporous suction cup 43 is connected to the second end of the bracket 42. The microporous suction cup 43 can be rotated by the rotation device 44, and transfer the battery electrode sheet into different sorting stations 50. The automatic control device 45 is used to read the weight of the battery electrode sheet, drive the rotation device 44 to rotate to place the plurality of battery electrode sheets in different sorting stations 50. The automatic control device 45 can be a computer or other intelligent device.
The plurality of sorting stations 50 can be distributed around the rotation device 44, and the carrying surface of the sorting station 50 is lower than the weighing surface. Thus the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be efficiently and quickly transferred to the sorting station 50, the work of the microporous suction cup 43 can be reduced, and the energy consumption can be reduced. Each sorting station 50 can be used to carry the battery electrode sheets having a same weight. Therefore, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be sorted.
Furthermore, the column guide 41 can be raised or lowered by a pneumatic device (not shown). Thus, the bracket 42 and the microporous suction cup 43 can be raised or lowered following the column guide 41. The microporous suction cup 43 can grip the plurality of battery electrode sheets, transfer them, and sort them.
The first guide rail 21 and the second guide rail 22 can be further equipped with a steel bar (not shown) for removing dust and burrs from the plurality of battery electrode sheets.
The sorting stations 50 can also be integrated with the rotation device 44. For example, the sorting stations 50 are located on the rotation device 44 and surround the column guide 41. The sorting stations 50 can be rotated with the rotation of the rotation device 44.
When the weighing device 30 acquires the weight of the battery electrode sheet, the measured weight information is transmitted to the automatic control device 45. The automatic control device 45 drives the rotation device 44 to rotate a certain angle based on the measured weight information. The sorting station 50 corresponding to the weight information can be rotated adjacent to the weighing device 30. The bracket 42 and the microporous suction cup 43 can draw the battery electrode sheet, and transfer the battery electrode sheet to the sorting station 50. Therefore, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be accurately sorted.
The automatic weighing and sorting apparatus for the battery electrode sheet has the following advantages. First, the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be automatically sorted according to weight using the automatic weighing and sorting device. Furthermore, the automatic process eliminates damage to the battery electrode sheet, which may be caused from manually handling the battery electrode sheets. Moreover, because the plurality of battery electrode sheets can be automatically and accurately sorted and transferred to different sort stations, the consistency of the battery electrode sheets on the sort station can be improved. By adopting the microporous suction cup and the rotation device, the operation speed and production capacity can be improved.
The embodiments shown and described above are only examples. Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present technology have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the present disclosure, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in the detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of the parts within the principles of the present disclosure, up to and comprising the full extent established by the broad general meaning of the terms used in the claims. It will therefore be appreciated that the embodiments described above may be modified within the scope of the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 201410618514.3 | Nov 2014 | CN | national |
This application claims all benefits accruing under 35 U.S.C. §119 from China Patent Application No. 201410618514.3, filed on Nov. 6, 2014 in the State Intellectual Property Office of China, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. This application is a continuation of international patent application PCT/CN2015/093284 filed Oct. 30, 2015, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/CN2015/093284 | Oct 2015 | US |
| Child | 15587241 | US |
