JP7247575B2 - Method for manufacturing battery stack - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a battery stack. More specifically, it relates to a method of manufacturing a battery stack consisting of a plurality of single cells.

When batteries such as lithium-ion secondary batteries are used in vehicles, etc., in order to obtain the desired operating voltage and charge capacity, they are assembled batteries (battery modules and battery stacks) that combine multiple single cells. ) may be installed as

For example, Patent Literature 1 describes a battery module formed by combining a plurality of cells. In Patent Literature 1, a battery module is configured by arranging end plates at both ends of a plurality of cells arranged side by side and connecting the end plates at both ends with brackets.

JP 2012-174693 A

By the way, when constructing an assembled battery as in the above-mentioned prior art, in order to suppress electric leakage, etc., insulating resin materials are used for members such as end plates and brackets that constitute the outer shell of the assembled battery. It is preferable to use However, the resin material is a material that is susceptible to deformation such as bending. In addition, for example, if deformation of resin material members may occur during assembly of the assembled battery, it may not be possible to stably manufacture a high-quality assembled battery.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made for the purpose of solving the above-described problems of the prior art. That is, the object is to provide a method for manufacturing a battery stack that can stably manufacture a high-quality battery stack composed of a plurality of single cells.

A method for manufacturing a battery stack according to the present invention, which has been made for the purpose of solving this problem, is a method for manufacturing a battery stack configured by assembling a plurality of battery modules each composed of a plurality of single cells, wherein the plurality of battery modules are arranged. A first resin bracket arranged on the first surface of the battery module group and a second resin bracket arranged on the second surface adjacent to the first surface of the battery module group are connected by It has a fastening process of fastening using a threaded part extending in a direction intersecting the second surface, and the fastening process is performed by restricting the rotation of the second resin bracket in the fastening direction of the threaded part by a rotation restricting part. This is done by rotating the threaded parts in the tightening direction. In the fastening process, the battery module group is placed on the mounting table, and a rotation restricting part is placed between the mounting table and the second resin bracket to restrict rotation. By bringing the upper surface of the part into contact with the lower surface of the second resin bracket, the rotation of the second resin bracket in the tightening direction is regulated, and after the fastening process, the contact of the rotation regulating part with the second resin bracket is prevented. A method for manufacturing a battery stack characterized by releasing.

In the battery stack manufacturing method according to the present invention, in the fastening step, the threaded part is rotated in the fastening direction while regulating the rotation of the second resin bracket in the fastening direction of the threaded part. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the tightening torque when rotating the threaded part in the tightening direction from acting on the deformation of the part made of the resin material. In other words, it is possible to suppress the loss of tightening torque and to perform fastening with threaded parts with stable quality. As a result, high-quality battery stacks can be stably manufactured.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the manufacturing method of the battery stack which can manufacture a high quality battery stack which consists of several single cells stably is provided.

It is a front view of a battery stack. It is a left side view of a battery stack. FIG. 4 is a front view of the battery stack in the fastening process; FIG. 10 is a left side view of the battery stack in the fastening process; FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tightening angle and the tightening torque in the tightening process performed using the support jig; FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tightening angle and the tightening torque in the fastening process performed without using a support jig;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The best mode embodying the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

First, a battery stack 10 manufactured in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. FIG. 1 is a front view of the battery stack 10. FIG. FIG. 2 is a view (left side view) of the battery stack 10 when viewed from the direction of arrow X in FIG. 1 correspond to the width direction, thickness direction, and height direction of the battery stack 10, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the battery stack 10 includes a battery module group 100 made up of a plurality of battery modules 110 . Each battery module 110 is configured by combining a plurality of single cells into a base housing. In the present embodiment, the cells that constitute each battery module 110 are cylindrical (columnar) sealed lithium-ion secondary batteries (specifically, 18650-type lithium-ion secondary batteries).

Also, the battery module group 100 is formed by arranging the battery modules 110 in two rows each in the width direction and the height direction. Accordingly, the battery stack 10 of this embodiment includes a battery module group 100 made up of four battery modules 110 in total. The number of battery modules 110 in battery module group 100 is not particularly limited. Also, in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first surface 101 and the second surface 102 of the battery module group 100 are shown with reference numerals. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first surface 101 and the second surface 102 of the battery module group 100 are adjacent surfaces.

In the battery stack 10 , a resin bracket 200 is arranged on the first surface 101 of the battery module group 100 . The resin bracket 200 of this embodiment is made of an insulating resin material. Also, the resin bracket 200 is a member that fixes each battery module 110 of the battery module group 100 . The resin bracket 200 fixes the battery module 110 to form the battery module group 100 and is fixed to the first surface 101 of the battery module group 100 .

The resin bracket 200 also has a screw hole portion 210 at a position on the second surface 102 side of the battery module group 100 . The screw hole portion 210 is formed with an internal thread that opens to the outer surface in the width direction of the battery stack 10 . Therefore, the axis of the internal thread formed in the screw hole portion 210 is parallel to the first surface 101 of the battery module group 100 and intersects the second surface 102 . In the resin bracket 200 made of an insulating resin material, the internal thread of the screw hole portion 210 is provided by a thread insert.

In the battery stack 10 , an H/Y (wire harness) clamp bracket 300 is arranged on the second surface 102 of the battery module group 100 . The H/Y clamp bracket 300 is made of an insulating resin material. Also, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is provided with a clamp or the like capable of appropriately forming a routing path for wiring members connected to the battery stack 10 . In this embodiment, the wiring member connected to the battery stack 10 is an electric wiring through which electricity associated with charging and discharging of the battery stack 10 flows.

Also, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 has a through hole portion 310 at a position on the first surface side of the battery module group 100 . A through hole is formed in the through hole portion 310 so as to pass through the H/Y clamp bracket 300 in the width direction of the battery stack 10 . The position of the through hole formed in the through hole portion 310 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 corresponds to the internal thread provided in the threaded hole portion 210 of the resin bracket 200 . Therefore, the central axis of the through hole formed in the through hole portion 310 is parallel to the thread axis of the internal thread formed in the threaded hole portion 210 .

The H/Y clamp bracket 300 is fastened to the resin bracket 200 with bolts 400 . Specifically, the bolt 400 is inserted through a through hole formed in the through hole portion 310 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 and into an internal thread formed in the threaded hole portion 210 of the resin bracket 200 . ing. That is, the thread axis of the externally threaded portion of the bolt 400 is parallel to the threaded axis of the internal thread formed in the threaded hole portion 210 .

Therefore, through hole portion 310 of H/Y clamp bracket 300 is sandwiched between the head of bolt 400 and screw hole portion 210 of resin bracket 200 . As a result, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is fastened and fixed to the resin bracket 200 .

In the battery stack 10 of this embodiment as described above, both the resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 arranged outside the battery module group 100 are made of an insulating resin material. Therefore, in the battery stack 10 of this embodiment, even if a conductive component outside the battery stack 10 comes into contact with the resin bracket 200 or the H/Y clamp bracket 300, electric leakage or the like will not occur. there is

Next, a method for manufacturing the battery stack 10 of this embodiment will be described. Battery stack 10 is manufactured by assembling battery module 110 , resin bracket 200 , and H/Y clamp bracket 300 . Specifically, a predetermined number of battery modules 110 are assembled to the resin bracket 200, and then the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is fastened to the resin bracket 200 with the bolts 400 in a fastening process. In addition, it is also possible to further perform a process of assembling other parts after the fastening process.

3 and 4 are diagrams for explaining the fastening process of this embodiment. FIG. 3 is a front view of the battery stack 10 in the fastening process. FIG. 4 is a left side view of the battery stack 10 in the fastening process.

As shown in FIG. 3 , in the fastening process of the present embodiment, the battery module group 100 with the resin bracket 200 attached thereto is placed on the mounting surface 501 of the mounting table 500 , and the second surface 102 of the battery module group 100 is H. / Place the Y clamp bracket 300 . At this time, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is arranged so that the through hole provided in the through hole portion 310 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 and the female screw provided in the screw hole portion 210 of the resin bracket 200 are aligned. . Then, in this state, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is fastened with the bolts 400 .

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a support jig 600 is used in the fastening process of this embodiment. The support jig 600 has an upper block 610 located above, a lower block 620 located below, and a turnbuckle screw 630 . The turnbuckle screw 630 has reverse threads (right-hand thread and left-hand thread) at one end and the other end, and has a hexagonal prism portion in the middle. Therefore, the turnbuckle screw 630 can adjust the size of the gap between the upper block 610 and the lower block 620 by rotating about its axis. Therefore, the support jig 600 can adjust the distance between the upper surface 611 of the upper block 610 and the lower surface 621 of the lower block 620 .

As shown in FIG. 3, the support jig 600 is arranged between the mounting table 500 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300. As shown in FIG. Also, the support jig 600 in the fastening process is arranged in a state where the height of the upper surface 611 of the upper block 610 is aligned with the lower surface 301 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 by the turnbuckle screw 630 . In other words, the upper surface 611 of the support jig 600 arranged between the mounting table 500 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is in contact with the lower surface 301 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 .

In the fastening process of this embodiment, the bolts 400 are screwed while the support jig 600 is arranged. FIG. 4 shows the tightening direction A when the bolt 400 is screwed. In this embodiment, the bolt 400 and the female thread of the screw hole portion 210 of the resin bracket 200 are right-hand threads. Therefore, the tightening direction A of the bolt 400 is clockwise in FIG.

Here, the external thread portion of the bolt 400 enters the internal thread of the resin bracket 200 due to the tightening torque when the bolt 400 is rotated in the tightening direction A. As a result, an axial force is generated in the bolt 400 . For this reason, when the tightening torque loss varies greatly, it is not possible to generate an appropriate axial force on the bolt 400, and the resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 cannot be fastened using the bolt 400. It may not work properly.

The resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300, which are made of a resin material, tend to flex greatly when a force is applied. That is, when the bolt 400 is rotated in the tightening direction A, friction is generated between the bolt 400 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 . As a result of this friction, a force acts on the H/Y clamp bracket 300 to rotate it in the same direction B as the tightening direction A of the bolt 400, as shown in FIG. Then, when the H/Y clamp bracket 300 rotates in the direction B, a tightening torque loss occurs due to the rotational movement.

Furthermore, when the bolts 400 are tightened, friction is also generated between the tightened resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 . Therefore, when the H/Y clamp bracket 300 rotates in the direction B, a large force in the direction B also acts on the resin bracket 200 . Therefore, when the H/Y clamp bracket 300 rotates in the direction B, the resin bracket 200 may be bent and deformed. When the resin bracket 200 is bent and deformed, the tightening torque is lost due to the deformation. The loss of tightening torque due to the deformation of the resin bracket 200 is particularly large, and there is a tendency for the loss to vary greatly due to the error of each part.

However, in the tightening process of this embodiment, the bolts 400 are used to tighten the upper surface 611 of the support jig 600 in contact with the lower surface 301 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 . Therefore, in the fastening process of this embodiment, the rotational movement of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 in the direction B is restricted by the contact of the lower surface 301 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 with the upper surface 611 of the support jig 600 . Therefore, the loss of tightening torque as described above can be suppressed.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tightening angle and the tightening torque in the tightening process of this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, the tightening torque tends to increase as the tightening angle increases. In this embodiment in which the rotational movement of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is suppressed, loss of tightening torque is suppressed, so that the tightening torque T can be efficiently applied to screw tightening. Further, this allows the tightening torque T to act stably on the screw tightening of the bolt 400 . Therefore, in the fastening process of this embodiment, a desired axial force can be stably generated in the bolt 400 .

On the other hand, FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the tightening angle and the tightening torque in the tightening process when no support jig is used unlike this embodiment. FIG. 6 shows torque loss T1, which is part of the tightening torque T and is lost due to deformation of a member made of a resin material. As can be seen from FIG. 6, when the support jig is not used, a large torque loss T1 exists, and the tightening torque T cannot efficiently act on screw tightening. In addition, the torque loss T1 can fluctuate greatly due to errors in parts related to screw tightening of bolts. Therefore, when the support jig is not used, even if the screw is tightened with a constant tightening torque T, the axial force generated in the bolt varies. Therefore, unlike this embodiment, when the fastening process is performed without using a support jig, a desired axial force cannot be stably generated in the bolt.

Further, after the fastening process of this embodiment, an inspection process may be performed to inspect whether or not the bolt 400 has been properly fastened. As an inspection method in this inspection process, it is conceivable to apply a rotational force in a tightening direction with a predetermined tightening torque to the bolt 400 after the tightening process. Also in such an inspection process, it is preferable to use the support jig 600 described above. This is because the tightening torque for the inspection can be appropriately applied to the bolt 400 without deforming the resin member such that it bends. That is, in the inspection process, by restricting the rotation of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 by the support jig 600, it is possible to perform highly accurate inspection. Therefore, a high-quality battery stack 10 can be manufactured.

As described in detail above, this embodiment describes a method of manufacturing a battery stack configured by assembling a plurality of battery modules 110 . The battery module 110 consists of a plurality of cells. Further, a fastening process is performed in manufacturing the battery stack 10 . In the fastening process, the resin bracket 200 arranged on the first surface 101 of the battery module group 100 formed by arranging a plurality of battery modules 110, and the H/Y clamp bracket arranged on the second surface 102 adjacent to the first surface 101. 300 are fastened using bolts 400 . More specifically, in the tightening process, the bolt 400 is rotated in the tightening direction A while the rotational movement of the resin bracket 200 in the direction B is restricted by the support jig 600 . At this time, the rotational direction B of the resin bracket 200 regulated by the support jig 600 is the same as the tightening direction A of the bolt 400 . As a result, a method of manufacturing a battery stack that can stably manufacture a high-quality battery stack composed of a plurality of single cells has been realized.

It should be noted that the present embodiment is merely an example, and does not limit the present invention in any way. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the gist of the invention. For example, in the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a lithium ion secondary battery has been described. However, it can also be applied to other types of batteries.

Further, for example, in the above embodiment, the screw axis of the internal thread of the screw hole portion 210 of the resin bracket 200 is parallel to the first surface 101 of the battery module group 100 . However, the axis of the screw for fastening does not necessarily have to be parallel to the first surface 101 and may intersect the second surface 102 . That is, when the axis of the screw related to fastening intersects the second surface 102, the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is rotated around the axis of the screw in the fastening process of fastening using the screw. This is because the force of

Further, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the bolt 400 is used as a threaded component that is rotated when the resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 are fastened together. However, for example, a nut may be used as a threaded part that is rotated when the resin bracket 200 and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 are fastened together. Specifically, a male threaded portion is provided on the resin bracket side, the through hole of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is passed through the male threaded portion, and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is tightened between the nut and the resin bracket. may be performed. In this case, metal can also be used as the material of the external thread provided on the resin bracket. When a metal male thread is provided on the resin bracket, a metal shaft is fixed to the resin bracket, and one end of the metal shaft protrudes so as to pass through the through hole of the H/Y clamp bracket 300, A thread may be formed on the protruding tip portion. If the resin bracket is provided with a metallic male threaded portion, the metallic portion is preferably insulated from the battery module.

Further, for example, in the above embodiment, the support jig 600 is used to restrict the rotation of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 in the tightening direction of the bolt 400 . That is, in the above embodiment, the upper surface 611 of the support jig 600 functions as a restricting surface that restricts the rotation of the bolt 400 of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 in the tightening direction. However, for example, the regulation of the rotation of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 does not necessarily have to be in the form of using the support jig 600 described above. Specifically, for example, when the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is arranged on the second surface 102, if a holding part (such as a robot hand) for holding the H/Y clamp bracket 300 is used, the holding part A restricting surface that restricts the rotation of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 may be provided.

In addition, when a regulating surface is provided on the holding portion that holds the H/Y clamp bracket 300, it may not be possible to provide a mechanism for finely adjusting the gap between the regulating surface and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 due to structural reasons. . If the gap between the regulating surface and the H/Y clamp bracket 300 cannot be finely adjusted in this manner, there is a possibility that the rotational movement of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 cannot be properly regulated due to variations in the dimensions of the H/Y clamp bracket 300 . In contrast, the support jig 600 of the above-described embodiment has a structure that allows fine adjustment of the position (height) of the restricting surface that restricts the rotation of the H/Y clamp bracket 300. Rotation can be properly regulated.

10 Battery stack 100 Battery module group 101 First surface 102 Second surface 110 Battery module 200 Resin bracket 300 H/Y clamp bracket 400 Bolt

Claims (1)

In a method for manufacturing a battery stack configured by assembling a plurality of battery modules each composed of a plurality of single cells,
A first resin bracket arranged on a first surface of a battery module group formed by arranging a plurality of battery modules, and a second resin bracket arranged on a second surface adjacent to the first surface of the battery module group. a fastening step of fastening the resin bracket to the resin bracket using a threaded component extending in a direction in which the axis of the screw intersects the second surface;
The fastening step is performed by rotating the threaded part in the tightening direction while regulating the rotation of the second resin bracket in the direction in which the threaded part is tightened by a rotation restricting part,
In the fastening step, the battery module group is arranged on a mounting table, the rotation restricting portion is arranged between the mounting table and the second resin bracket, and the upper surface of the rotation restricting portion is placed on the second resin bracket . By contacting the lower surface of the resin bracket of the second resin bracket, the rotation of the tightening direction of the second resin bracket is regulated,
A method of manufacturing a battery stack, wherein the contact of the rotation restricting portion to the second resin bracket is released after the fastening step.

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