JP4120746B2 - Lead-acid battery inter-cell connection device - Google Patents

Description

【００２３】
比較品（装置Ａによるもの）Ａは、接触面１５が下方向に膨れ、かつ上方向はへこんだ形状となり相似形にならなかった。また、比較品（装置Ｂによるもの）Ｂは、チップ１が平行に押圧されるため、接触面の上下方向の膨らみは均一になったが、水平方向の膨らみが０．３ｍｍであったのに対して上下方向に１．２ｍｍと大きく膨れ、貫通孔に対して相似形にならなかった。一方、本発明による鉛蓄電池は、隣接するセル間接続体１１，１１の接触面１５の膨れが上下、水平方向共に貫通孔８の形状と略相似形になり、溶接状態にばらつきが生じず、良好な接続が得られた。
【００２４】
また、実施例と比較例で各３個ずつ鉛蓄電池を作製し、それぞれのセル間接続体（電池１個につき５か所）を引き剥がし、溶接面を観察した。その結果を表２に示す。
【００２５】
【表２】

【００２６】
以上のとおり、本発明の電極チップ１を用いると、隣接するセル間接続体１１，１１の接触面１５が貫通孔８の形状と略相似形になり、溶接状態にばらつきが生じず、良好な接続が得られる。
【００２７】
【発明の効果】
以上詳述したように、本発明によれば、電極チップ１の先端と各突起の各変位部外周との最短距離が各々一定であり、また、正面が上方ほど手前側に傾斜しており、背面でアーム２と固定されているので、セル間接続部の接触面の形状が貫通孔の形状と略相似形になり、良好なセル間接続状態が得られる。また、本発明は、チップ１の上下方向が短い長円形あり、かつアームとチップの下端が切りかかれているので、セル間接続体の高さ寸法を短くでき、容積効率に優れた鉛蓄電池を提供できる。
【図面の簡単な説明】
【図１】本発明の一実施形態を示し、（イ）は要部側面図、（ロ）は要部正面図である。
【図２】本発明のセル間接続に係る電槽の斜視図である。
【図３】従来装置を用いたセル間接続の説明図である。
【図４】本発明の電極チップと貫通孔の位置関係を示す要部正面図である。
【図５】従来の一実施形態を示し、（イ）は要部側面図、（ロ）は要部正面図である。
【図６】従来の他の実施形態を示し、（イ）は要部側面図、（ロ）は要部正面図である。
【図７】従来のさらに他の実施形態を示し、（イ）は要部側面図、（ロ）は要部正面図である。
【図８】セル間接続体の接触面の形状を示し、（イ）は図６の装置で、（ロ）は図７の装置で押圧したときの断面図である。
【符号の説明】
１ 電極チップ
２ アーム
３ 突起の先端
２０ 突起
１a、１b、１c 先端と一段目の傾斜面外周との最短距離
２a、２b、２c 先端と二段目の傾斜面外周との最短距離
３a、３b、３c 先端と三段目の傾斜面外周との最短距離
２０ａ、２０ｂ、２０ｃ 傾斜面[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an inter-cell connection device for a lead storage battery.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As shown in FIG. 3, a conventional lead-acid battery inter-cell connection method is provided with a through hole 8 in a partition wall 7 that partitions the cell chamber 6 of the battery case 9, and the adjacent cell chambers 6, 6 through the through hole 8. The inter-cell connecting bodies 11 and 11 of opposite polarities standing on the straps 10 and 10 of the inner electrode plate groups 12 and 12 are arranged facing each other, and these connecting bodies 11 and 11 are arranged on the back of the inter-cell connecting apparatus from the back. This was a method in which the electrode tips 1 and 1 were pushed into the through-hole 8 and when the connection bodies 11 and 11 obtained a certain contact area, the electrode tips 1 and 1 were energized and welded.
[0003]
Usually, when this method is adopted, the shape of the through-hole 8 provided in the battery case partition wall 7 is a perfect circle, and the front shape of the electrode tip 1 is also a perfect circle as shown in FIG. Recently, however, demands for improving the volumetric efficiency of the battery have increased, and the height of the connection body 11 is reduced, and the height of the working surface of the electrode plates 13 and 14 is increased accordingly. One of them is that the front shape of the electrode chip 1 is changed from a perfect circle to an oblong shape that is short in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 6, and the shape of the through hole 8 of the battery case partition 7 is also changed from a true circle to an ellipse. Note that the oval cross-sectional area at this time is not different from the true circular cross-sectional area.
[0004]
In this way, the height of the connection body 11 can be shortened by the difference between the diameter of the perfect circle and the short diameter of the oval (length in the vertical direction), and the working surface of the electrode plates 13 and 14 can be reduced accordingly. Therefore, the electric capacity in the same volume can be increased. The shape of the through hole 8 may be elliptical, the shape of the protrusion 20 is the same as the shape of the through hole 8, and the diameter is such that the contact area of the connection body 11 is 20 to 50% with respect to the cross-sectional area of the through hole. Have decided.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the inter-cell connection device described above, the outer periphery of the chip 1 (seat 16) is a perfect circle, and the arm 2 for fixing the chip 1 projects downward from the outer periphery of the chip 1 (FIGS. 5 to 5). 7). For this reason, the conventional through hole 8 had to be made higher than the upper surface of the strap 10 by a length obtained by adding L and the radius of the chip 1 as shown in FIG. As a result, the height of the battery case 9 or the electrode plate group 12 is restricted, and there is a problem in producing a battery having excellent volume efficiency.
[0006]
The cross-sectional area of the through-hole 8 is determined by the maximum discharge current of the battery, the mechanical strength during vibration, etc. In order to perform welding so as to fill all of the cross-sectional area, the electrode tip 1 is used. The shape of the contact surface of the connection body 11 pushed out at the step has a great influence. That is, the ideal shape of the contact surface is a true similarity to the shape of the through hole 8. However, when the projection 20 and the seat 16 of the electrode tip 1 and the through hole 8 are oval (including an ellipse, the same applies hereinafter) that are not similar to each other, as shown in FIG. 15 did not become similar, for example, swelled up and down. When electric resistance welding is performed in this state, the molten lead melted by resistance heat starts to melt along the outer periphery of the contact surface 15, so that there is a time difference in arriving at the inner surface of the through-hole 8 and the welding state varies. However, in the worst case, there is a problem that welding failure occurs.
[0007]
Further, in the step of pressing the connecting bodies 11, 11 into the through-hole 8 with the electrode tips 1, 1 from the back side, the resistance welding portion of the battery connecting body 11 is welded so that all of the cross-section is pushed with an equal force. The angle at which the electrode tip 1 is pushed out has a great influence.
[0008]
Usually, the connection bodies 11 are integrally formed simultaneously with the strap 10 to which the electrode plate group 12 is connected by a cast-on-strap method. At this time, the connection bodies 11 and 11 are manufactured in a trapezoidal shape so that the upper end is thin and the lower part is thicker to eliminate casting defects. Therefore, when the connecting bodies 11 and 11 are pushed in with the chip, the connecting bodies 11 and 11 are pressed from the diagonal direction by the front surface of the chip. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), the contact surface 15 swelled downward, and the upward direction was indented and did not have a similar shape. When electric resistance welding is performed in this state, the molten lead melted by resistance heat starts to melt along the outer periphery of the contact surface 15, so that there is a time difference in arriving at the inner surface of the through-hole 8 and the welding state varies. However, in the worst case, there is a problem that welding failure occurs.
[0009]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the object of the present invention is to produce a lead-acid battery with excellent volumetric efficiency and obtain a good inter-cell connection state. To provide an apparatus.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problem, inter-cell connecting bodies having opposite polarities of electrode groups 12 adjacent to each other through the partition wall 7 of the battery case 9 are connected to each other by the electrode chip 1 fixed to the pair of arms 2. In the inter-cell connection device for lead-acid batteries, which is pressed from the back surface of 11 and contacts the connecting bodies 11 in the through-holes 8 of the partition wall 7 and is resistance-welded, the chip 1 is formed so that the vertical direction is shorter than the horizontal direction. The projection 20 having three inclined surfaces 20a, 20b, and 20c on the front surface and the linear tip 3, the shortest distance between the tip 3 and the outer periphery of each inclined surface is constant, and the electrode tip 1 The arms 2 are characterized in that the lower ends are cut out horizontally and have the same height. Thereby, the favorable connection state between cells can be obtained, the height dimension of a connection body can be made small, and the lead storage battery excellent in volumetric efficiency can be provided.
[0011]
The electrode tip 1 is characterized in that the front surface is inclined toward the front side as it is upward. Thereby, the connection body 11, the partition 7, and the through-hole 8 can be pressed and resistance-welded in parallel, and a favorable connection state between cells can be obtained.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0013]
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) is a side view of the main part, (B) is a front view of the main part, 1 is an electrode chip, and 2 is an arm that supports the chip. The electrode tip 1 and the arm 2 have a pair as shown in FIG. 3, but only one side is shown in FIG. The shape of the electrode tip 1 has an oval and conical projection 20 having three inclined surfaces 20a, 20b, and 20c on the front surface (the surface facing the other tip), and becomes thicker as it approaches the arm 2. Yes. The outer circumference of each inclined surface and the fixed seat 16 is shorter in the vertical direction than the horizontal direction, and the lower ends of the fixed seat 16 and the arm 2 of the chip 1 are notched and have the same height.
[0014]
The protrusion 20 has a straight tip 3 and the shortest distance between the tip 3 and the outer periphery of the inclined surfaces 20a, 20b, and 20c is constant as shown in FIG. 4 (1a = 1b = 1c, 2a = 2b = 2c, 3a = 3b = 3c). Further, the outer circumferences of the inclined surfaces 20 a and 20 b are smaller than that of the through hole 8, and the outer circumference of the inclined surface 20 c is larger than that of the through hole 8. Further, the electrode tip 1 is inclined to the near side as the front is upward, and the back is fixed to the arm 2.
[0015]
Such an inter-cell connection device has the following positional relationship with the lead storage battery when manufacturing the lead storage battery. That is, the front surface of the chip 1 is positioned parallel to the back pressing surface of the lead-acid battery connector, and the arm 2 is positioned parallel to the partition wall.
[0016]
【Example】
Hereinafter, a method for producing a lead-acid battery using the present invention will be described.
[0017]
(Example)
First, a battery case 9 having six cell chambers 6 as shown in FIG. 2 and having an oval through hole 8 whose vertical direction is shorter than the horizontal direction is prepared in a partition wall 7 that partitions adjacent cell chambers 6 and 6. To do.
[0018]
Next, as shown in FIG. 3, the electrode plates 12 having the same polarity connected to each cell chamber 6 of the battery case 9 by the strap 10 and the connection body 11 standing at one end of the strap 10 are accommodated. To do. At this time, the inter-cell connecting bodies 11, 11 of the adjacent cell chambers 6, 6 are accommodated so as to have opposite polarities through the through holes 8 of the partition walls 7. In addition, 13 is a positive electrode plate, 14 is a negative electrode plate.
[0019]
Next, the tips of the electrode tips 1 and 1 of the present invention are applied to the back surfaces of the intercell connectors 11 and 11 facing each other through the through-holes 8, and the electrode tips 1 and 1 are connected to each other by the arms 2 and 2. The inter-cell connectors 11, 11 are pushed into the through-hole 8 by approaching each other. The positional relationship between the chip 1 and the arm 2 at this time is such that the front surface of the chip 1 is positioned parallel to the back pressing surface of the connection body, and the arm 2 is positioned parallel to the partition wall 7. Furthermore, the positional relationship between the through hole 8 and the electrode tip 1 is as shown in FIG. 4 when viewed from the front, and the dimensional differences d and e between the through hole 8 and the tip 1 are the same on both sides and upper and lower sides of the through hole 8. It has become. Then, the arms 2 and 2 are moved in parallel, and when the arms reach a predetermined distance, the movement of the arms is stopped, and an electric current is supplied to the electrode tips 1 and 1 to connect the connection bodies 11 and 11 in the through-hole 8 to each other. Resistance welding is performed to complete the connection between cells.
[0020]
(Comparative example)
As shown in FIG. 6, the shape of the electrode tip 1 has a cone-shaped protrusion 20 with a flat tip and an inclination, and becomes thicker as it approaches the arm. The protrusion 20 has an elliptical shape in which the vertical direction is shorter than the horizontal direction, and the fixed seat 16 is formed of a perfect circular smooth surface. The fixed seat 16 of the chip 1 and the lower end of the arm 2 were not cut out. Further, the electrode chip 1 was manufactured such that the back surface and the front surface were parallel, and the device A was fixed to the arm 2 on the back surface. Separately from this, as shown in FIG. 7, the front surface of the electrode chip 1 is inclined toward the front (front side) toward the upper side, and is fixed to the arm 2 on the back surface, and the other device B having the same shape as the device A is manufactured did. Using the devices A and B of these comparative examples, inter-cell connections were made in the same manner as in the examples.
[0021]
In addition, in the Example and the comparative example, the shape of the contact surface 15 of the connection body 11 between cells 11 when the movement of the arms 2 and 2 was stopped was observed. The results are shown in Table 1. The numerical values in Table 1 indicate the size (mm) of the bulge in the vertical direction with respect to the ideal shape of the contact surface 15 (similar to the shape of the electrode tip 1) (average value of 5 locations per battery) .
[0022]
[Table 1]

[0023]
In the comparative product (by the apparatus A) A, the contact surface 15 swelled downward, and the upward direction was indented and did not have a similar shape. Further, in the comparative product (by the device B) B, since the chip 1 is pressed in parallel, the bulge in the vertical direction of the contact surface becomes uniform, but the bulge in the horizontal direction is 0.3 mm. On the other hand, it swelled as large as 1.2 mm in the vertical direction, and did not have a similar shape to the through hole. On the other hand, in the lead-acid battery according to the present invention, the swelling of the contact surface 15 of the adjacent inter-cell connector 11, 11 is substantially similar to the shape of the through-hole 8 in the vertical and horizontal directions, and the welding state does not vary. A good connection was obtained.
[0024]
In addition, three lead storage batteries were prepared for each of the examples and comparative examples, each inter-cell connector (five places per battery) was peeled off, and the welded surface was observed. The results are shown in Table 2.
[0025]
[Table 2]

[0026]
As described above, when the electrode tip 1 of the present invention is used, the contact surface 15 of the adjacent inter-cell connector 11, 11 is substantially similar to the shape of the through hole 8, and the welded state does not vary and is favorable. A connection is obtained.
[0027]
【The invention's effect】
As described above in detail, according to the present invention, the shortest distance between the tip of the electrode tip 1 and the outer periphery of each displacement portion of each protrusion is constant, and the front is inclined toward the front side as it is upward. Since the back surface is fixed to the arm 2, the shape of the contact surface of the inter-cell connecting portion is substantially similar to the shape of the through hole, and a good inter-cell connection state is obtained. Moreover, since the present invention has an elliptical shape in which the vertical direction of the chip 1 is short and the lower end of the arm and the chip is cut, the height dimension of the inter-cell connection body can be shortened, and a lead storage battery excellent in volumetric efficiency can be obtained. Can be provided.
[Brief description of the drawings]
1A and 1B show an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a side view of an essential part, and FIG.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a battery case according to the connection between cells of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of inter-cell connection using a conventional apparatus.
FIG. 4 is a front view of the main part showing the positional relationship between the electrode tip and the through hole of the present invention.
5A and 5B show an embodiment of the prior art, in which FIG. 5A is a side view of the main part, and FIG. 5B is a front view of the main part.
6A and 6B show another embodiment of the prior art, where FIG. 6A is a side view of the main part, and FIG. 6B is a front view of the main part.
7A and 7B show still another conventional embodiment, in which FIG. 7A is a side view of an essential part, and FIG.
8A and 8B show the shape of the contact surface of the inter-cell connector, where FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view when pressed by the apparatus of FIG. 6 and FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electrode tip 2 Arm 3 Protrusion tip 20 Protrusions 1a, 1b, 1c Shortest distance 2a, 2b, 2c between tip and outer periphery of first inclined surface 3a, 3b, shortest distance between tip and outer periphery of second inclined surface 3c Shortest distance 20a, 20b, 20c between the tip and the outer periphery of the inclined surface of the third step

Claims (1)

A lead-acid battery inter-cell connection device in which electrode tips are attached to opposing surfaces of a pair of arms via a fixed seat , wherein the fixed seat is inclined so that the upper side is higher than the lower side with respect to the opposing surfaces of the arms. The tip is shorter than the horizontal direction in the vertical direction, and has a projection extending from the front end of the fixed seat to the front end of the straight line through three steps of the inclined surface, and the shortest distance from the front end to the outer periphery of each inclined surface is together formed to be constant, the inter-cell connecting apparatus of the lead storage battery to the lower ends of the arms of the fixing seat, characterized in that is by cutting horizontally to have the same height.

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