JP7633219B2 - Electrode plate processing device - Google Patents

Description

The technology disclosed here belongs to the technical field of electrode plate processing equipment.

In the past, in electricity storage devices such as lithium ion batteries, lithium ion capacitors, and all-solid-state batteries, it has been proposed to form a large number of holes in the active material layer that constitutes the electrode to promote the penetration of the electrolyte into the electrode. For this reason, devices for forming holes in the electrode have been developed.

For example, Patent Document 1 proposes forming holes by rolling a roller with protrusions on its outer periphery over an active material.

In addition, Patent Document 2 proposes a method for forming parallelogram-shaped recesses (holes) in an electrode plate by forming the recesses using a flat press or roller with a predetermined protrusion formed on the surface either after or during the drying of the positive electrode composite layer.

JP 2015-130297 A JP 2013-69428 A

As described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, holes can be efficiently machined by using a roller as the processing device. One method for manufacturing such rollers is to form protrusions on a metal plate that correspond to the shape of the hole, and then attach the protrusions to the surface of the roller. This method has the advantage that the protrusions can be easily machined into the desired shape.

However, when a processing roller is produced in the above manner, there is a risk that unevenness will occur in the amount of adhesive applied when attaching each metal plate, resulting in a deterioration in the roundness of the roller. Even if unevenness in the amount of adhesive applied is prevented, the end of the metal plate may float relative to the roller due to the restoring force of the metal plate, or the metal plate itself may have a variable thickness, resulting in a deterioration in the roundness of the processing roller. Furthermore, with a large diameter roller, multiple metal plates are attached in the circumferential direction, and if there is variation in the thickness of each metal plate, the diameter of the processing roller will vary in the circumferential direction, resulting in a deterioration in the roundness of the processing roller.

When forming holes in an electrode plate, it is preferable to make the depth of the holes uniform in order to ensure uniform penetration of the electrolyte. However, as mentioned above, if a roller with poor roundness is used, it becomes difficult to process the holes so that they are uniform in depth.

If the metal plate is processed so that it maintains its shape along the surface of the roller, the roundness of the processed roller can be made high, but the manufacturing cost of the processed roller is high, and the metal plate must be processed every time it is replaced for maintenance, which may reduce production efficiency. For this reason, there is a demand to make the hole drilling accuracy in the electrode plate as high as possible, even if it reduces the roundness of the processed roller.

The technology disclosed here has been developed in consideration of these points, and its purpose is to maximize the precision of hole drilling in electrode plates, even when rollers with low roundness are used.

In order to solve the above problem, the technology disclosed herein is directed to an electrode plate processing device for forming a bottomed hole in an electrode plate, and is provided with a winding roller around which the electrode plate before processing is wound and which feeds out the electrode plate, a plurality of die devices having processing rollers that have a width narrower than the width of the electrode plate and form the hole in the processed surface of the electrode plate, a backup roller that holds the electrode plate together with each of the processing rollers, and a take-up roller that winds up the electrode plate after processing. The processing rollers have a cylindrical roller body and a metal plate attached to the surface of the roller body and provided with a plurality of protrusions for forming the hole, and only one metal plate is provided in each axial direction of each of the processing rollers. Each of the die devices is arranged so that the processing rollers are aligned in the width direction of the electrode plate when viewed from the circumferential direction of the backup roller, with the processing rollers suspended independently of the other die devices, and each of the die devices has a pressing device that presses the processing roller against the backup roller.

According to this configuration, in each processing roller, only one metal plate is attached to the roller body in the axial direction of the processing roller. Therefore, each processing roller is less likely to have variation in roundness in its axial direction. In addition, each die device has a pressing device. As a result, even if the roundness of each processing roller is reduced due to the restoring force of the metal plate, the pressing device can press the processing roller against the processing surface of the electrode plate so that the metal plate of the processing roller properly contacts the electrode plate. This makes it possible to make the depth of the hole formed by the protrusion uniform.

In addition, since each die device suspends each processing roller independently, each pressing device can press each processing roller individually against the electrode plate. This allows the metal plate of each processing roller to be properly contacted with the electrode plate even if the roundness of each processing roller differs from one another. As a result, the depth of the hole formed by the protrusion can be made uniform.

This improves the accuracy of drilling holes into the electrode plate.

In one embodiment of the electrode plate processing device, a controller is further provided for controlling the operation of each of the pressing devices, and the controller controls each of the pressing devices so that the pressing force of each of the processing rollers against the electrode plate is constant.

With this configuration, each processing roller is pressed against the electrode plate with an appropriate pressing force, making it possible to make the depth of the holes formed by the protrusions more uniform. This further improves the accuracy of hole processing in the electrode plate.

In one embodiment, each of the pressing devices may have an air cylinder and a regulator for adjusting the amount of air supplied to the air cylinder, and the controller may be configured to adjust the pressing force of each of the processing rollers against the electrode plate by controlling each of the regulators to adjust the amount of air supplied to each of the air cylinders.

This configuration allows the pressing force of the processing roller against the electrode plate to be adjusted easily and with good responsiveness. This further improves the accuracy of drilling holes into the electrode plate.

In the embodiment in which the pressing device is an air cylinder, each of the die devices may be arranged so that the central axis of the processing roller and the central axis of the backup roller are located on an extension of the axial center line of the cylinder rod of the air cylinder.

With this configuration, the air cylinder moves in the radial direction of the processing roller and the backup roller, so the pressing force generated by each air cylinder can be transmitted from the processing roller to the electrode plate with almost no reduction. This allows each processing roller to be pressed against the electrode plate with an appropriate pressing force, further improving the accuracy of hole processing in the electrode plate.

In the electrode plate processing device, each of the die devices may be arranged such that the processing rollers adjacent to each other in the width direction of the electrode plate are offset in the circumferential direction of the back-up roller.

With this configuration, adjacent processing rollers in the width direction of the electrode plate are positioned with a circumferential offset around the back-up roller, so that even if the support structure for suspending each processing roller is relatively large, the gap between the processing rollers in the width direction of the electrode plate can be made as small as possible. This allows the processing rollers to be properly supported and prevents linear areas of unmachined holes from appearing on the processing surface of the electrode plate.

As described above, the technology disclosed herein can provide an electrode plate machining device that can improve the accuracy of drilling holes in electrode plates.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an electrode plate to be processed in an exemplary embodiment, where (a) is a plan view of the electrode plate, and (b) is a cross-sectional view cut along a plane corresponding to line Ib-Ib in (a). FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the electrode plate machining device. FIG. 3 is a front view of a die assembly including a processing roller. FIG. 4 is a side view of the die assembly. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the processing roller. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an air supply system for each air cylinder. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the processing rollers. FIG. 8 is a side view showing the positional relationship between the processing roller and the backup roller. FIG. 9 is a side view showing a modified example of the arrangement of the processing rollers. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the processing roller.

An exemplary embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

(Electrode plate)
1 shows an electrode plate 100 machined by an electrode plate machining apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. This electrode plate 100 is an electrode plate used for at least one of the positive and negative electrodes of a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery.

1(b), the electrode plate 100 is constructed by laminating an active material layer 101 on a current collector foil 102. In the case of a lithium-ion battery, the positive electrode active material layer 101 is made of a lithium-containing composite oxide containing lithium and at least one transition metal element, such as manganese lithium composite oxide (LiMn ₂ O ₄ ) or nickel-manganese LiNi _x Mn _1-x O ₂ (0<x<1), and the negative electrode active material layer 101 is made of a carbon material such as carbon particles. For the positive electrode current collector foil 102, aluminum or an alloy mainly made of aluminum can be used, and for the negative electrode, copper or an alloy mainly made of copper can be used.

As shown in Figures 1(a) and 1(b), the active material layer 101 of the electrode plate 100 has a bottomed hole 103. In other words, the surface of the electrode plate 100 on which the active material layer 101 is formed corresponds to the processed surface. This hole 103 is a hole for improving the permeation efficiency of the electrolyte into the active material layer 101. In this embodiment, the hole 103 has an inverted cone shape. The depth of the hole 103 is, for example, about 10 μm.

(Electrode plate processing device)
Next, a description will be given of the electrode plate processing device 1 for forming the above-mentioned electrode plate 100. The electrode plate 100 is a wide thin plate when processed, but after processing, it is cut to an appropriate size according to the shape of the battery, and has a shape as shown in FIG.

Figure 2 shows a schematic configuration of the electrode plate processing device 1 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the processing device 1). The processing device 1 includes an unwinding roller 10 around which the electrode plate 100 before processing is wound and which sends out the electrode plate 100, a first guide roller 11 which guides the electrode plate 100 sent out from the unwinding roller 10, a first dancer section 12 for adjusting the tension applied to the electrode plate 100 before processing during transportation, a second guide roller 13 which guides the electrode plate 100 sent from the first dancer section 12 to a downstream processing mechanism 30, a processing mechanism 30 which forms a hole 103 in the processing surface of the electrode plate 100 (the surface on which the active material layer 101 is formed), a second dancer section 14 for adjusting the tension applied to the processed electrode plate 100 during transportation, third and fourth guide rollers 15 and 16 which guide the processed electrode plate 100 to the winding roller 20, and a winding roller 20 which winds up the processed electrode plate 100.

The unwinding roller 10 is configured as a drive roller that is driven to rotate by a first motor 10a. In the processing device 1 shown in FIG. 2, the electrode plate 100 is wound around the unwinding roller 10 so that the active material layer 101 of the electrode plate 100 is on the back side. Although not shown, a winding diameter sensor is provided near the unwinding roller 10 to detect the winding diameter of the electrode plate 100 wound around the unwinding roller 10.

The first guide roller 11 guides the electrode plate 100 sent from the unwinding roller 10 to the downstream first dancer section 12 so that the electrode plate 100 is in the appropriate transport direction. The first guide roller 11 is a free roller that does not have a drive source for rotation.

The first dancer section 12 has a first support roller 12a whose position is fixed, a first dancing roller 12b whose position is movable and located downstream of the first support roller 12a, and a first swinging mechanism 12c that swings the first dancing roller 12b. The first swinging mechanism 12c has a first connecting rod whose one end is connected to the first dancing roller 12b and whose other end is attached to a support shaft, and a first dancer cylinder 12d that swings the first connecting rod around the support shaft. The electrode plate 100 is wound around the first support roller 12a and then around the first dancing roller 12b. The first dancer section 12 adjusts the tension on the electrode plate 100 to be constant by the first dancer cylinder 12d pushing and pulling the first connecting rod to move the first dancing roller 12b relative to the first support roller 12a. Both the first support roller 12a and the first dancing roller 12b are free rollers that do not have a drive source for rotation. The first dancer cylinder 12d is an air cylinder. Although not shown, an EPC (Edge Position Control, registered trademark) sensor is provided between the first guide roller 11 and the first support roller 12a to detect the position of the widthwise end of the electrode plate 100 being transported, and the first support roller 12a is provided with a tension sensor to detect the tension of the electrode plate 100 being transported.

The second guide roller 13 guides the electrode plate 100 to the downstream processing mechanism 30 so that the electrode plate 100 is in the appropriate transport direction. The second guide roller 13 is positioned so that the electrode plate 100 can be wrapped around the backup roller 40 of the processing mechanism 30 by at least 1/3 of the circumference of the backup roller 40. The second guide roller 13 is a free roller that does not have a drive source for rotation.

The machining mechanism 30 has a plurality of die devices 31, each having a machining roller 32 that forms a hole 103 in the machining surface of the electrode plate 100, and a backup roller 40 that clamps the electrode plate 100 together with each machining roller 32. Each die device 31 has a die pressure cylinder 38 (see FIG. 3, etc.) that presses the machining roller 32 against the backup roller 40. The backup roller 40 is configured as a drive motor that is rotated by a third motor 42. Details of the machining mechanism 30 will be described later.

The second dancer section 14 has a second support roller 14a whose position is fixed, a second dancing roller 14b whose position is movable and located upstream of the second support roller 14a, and a second swinging mechanism 14c that swings the second dancing roller 14b. The second swinging mechanism 14c has a second connecting rod whose one end is connected to the second dancing roller 14b and whose other end is attached to a support shaft, and a second dancer cylinder 14d that swings the second connecting rod around the support shaft. The electrode plate 100 is wound around the second dancing roller 14b and then wound around the second support roller 14a. The second dancer section 14 adjusts the tension on the electrode plate 100 to be constant by the second dancer cylinder 14d pushing and pulling the second connecting rod to move the second dancing roller 14b relative to the second support roller 14a. The second support roller 14a and the second dancing roller 14b are both free rollers that do not have a drive source for rotation. The second dancer cylinder 14d is an air cylinder. Although not shown in the figure, the second support roller 14a is equipped with a tension sensor that detects the tension of the electrode plate 100 during transport.

The third and fourth guide rollers 15, 16 guide the processed electrode plate 100 to the take-up roller 20 so that the electrode plate 100 is in the appropriate transport direction. The third and fourth guide rollers 15, 16 are free rollers that do not have a drive source for rotation. Although not shown in the figure, an EPC (Edge Position Control, registered trademark) sensor is provided between the second support roller 14a and the third guide roller 15 to detect the position of the widthwise end of the electrode plate 100 being transported.

The winding roller 20 is configured as a drive roller that is driven to rotate by the second motor 20a. In the processing device 1 shown in FIG. 2, the electrode plate 100 is wound around the winding roller 20 so that the active material layer 101 of the electrode plate 100 is on the front side. Although not shown, a winding diameter sensor is provided near the winding roller 20 to detect the winding diameter of the electrode plate 100 wound around the winding roller 20.

The processing device 1 is controlled by the controller 50. The controller 50 has a processor having a CPU, a memory in which a plurality of modules are stored, and the like. The controller 50 operates the first motor 10a, the second motor 20a, the third motor 42, the first dancer cylinder 12d, the second dancer cylinder 14d, and the mold pressurizing cylinder 38 (see FIG. 3, etc.) based on the detection results of each winding diameter sensor, each tension sensor, each EPC sensor, and each load sensor 38b described later. Specifically, the controller 50 synchronizes the first motor 10a, the second motor 20a, and the third motor 42, and adjusts the amount of air supplied to the first dancer cylinder 12d and the second dancer cylinder 14d, so that the electrode plate 100 does not bend or meander during transportation, based on the detection results of each sensor. In addition, as will be described in detail later, the controller 50 controls the amount of air supplied to each die pressurizing cylinder 38 so that the pressing force of each processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 is constant. Such functions are stored as software in a memory module. The number of processors and memories is not limited to one, and the controller 50 may have two or more processors and memories.

(Processing mechanism)
3 to 5 show a die device 31 provided in the processing mechanism 30. Although there are a plurality of die devices 31 (six in this embodiment), the configuration of each die device 31 is the same, so that only one die device 31 will be described in detail below.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the die device 31 has a processing roller 32 as a die for forming a hole 103 in the processing surface of the electrode plate 100. The width of the processing roller 32 is narrower than the width of the electrode plate 100. Specifically, in this embodiment, the width of the processing roller 32 is about 1/6 of the width of the electrode plate 100 during processing.

As shown in FIG. 5, the processing roller 32 has a cylindrical roller body 32a. The processing roller 32 is formed by attaching a single metal plate 33 to the outer circumferential surface of the roller body 32a with an adhesive. The width of the metal plate 33 is the same as the width of the roller body 32a, and the length of the metal plate 33 is the same as the circumference of the roller body 32a. The through hole 32b of the roller body 32a is the portion into which the support shaft 35 described below is inserted. The roller body 32a can be made of a metal such as aluminum or stainless steel.

The metal plate 33 has a plurality of protrusions 33a formed in a predetermined pattern on the work surface 33b located on the opposite side to the roller body 32a. Each protrusion 33a is cone-shaped corresponding to the shape of the hole 103. The height of the protrusions 33a from the work surface 33b is set to about 10 μm depending on the depth of the hole 103. The protrusions 33a are arranged at equal intervals in the width direction of the metal plate 33. The intervals between the two protrusions 33a at both ends of the width direction of the metal plate 33 and the width direction ends of the metal plate 33 are set to half the interval between the protrusions 33a adjacent to each other in the width direction of the metal plate 33. The protrusions 33a are formed of a metal harder than the active material layer 101.

The processing roller 32 is a free roller that does not have a drive source for rotation.

The die device 31 has a support mechanism that supports the processing rollers 32. One support mechanism is provided for each die device 31, and supports each processing roller 32 independently. The support mechanism has a support shaft 35 that is fixed to the processing roller 32 and supports the processing roller 32, and a holding portion 36 that holds the processing roller 32 together with the support shaft 35.

The support shaft 35 is attached and fixed to the processing roller 32 so that it is coaxial with the processing roller 32. Bearings 37 are attached to both axial ends of the support shaft 35. This allows the processing roller 32 to rotate together with the support shaft 35 around its central axis.

As shown in FIG. 3, the holding portion 36 is U-shaped in front view. Specifically, the holding portion 36 has a first wall portion 36a located on one side of the support shaft 35 in the axial direction and having a rectangular plate shape, a second wall portion 36b located on the other side of the axial direction so as to face the first wall portion 36a in the axial direction and having a rectangular plate shape, and a connecting wall portion 36c that connects one end of the first wall portion 36a in the longitudinal direction to one end of the second wall portion 36b in the longitudinal direction in the axial direction. A recess that accommodates and fixes the bearing 37 is formed in the other longitudinal side portion of the first wall portion 36a and the second wall portion 36b (only the recess of the first wall portion 36a is shown in FIG. 4). A lid body 36d in the form of an elongated plate is arranged at the opening of the recess. The lid body 36d is fixed to the first wall portion 36a and the second wall portion 36b by bolts. The first wall 36a and the second wall 36b may be integral with the connecting wall 36c or may be separate.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the processing roller 32 is held in the holding part 36 by fixing the cover 36d to the first and second wall parts 36a and 36b with the bearing 37 and support shaft 35 housed in the recesses of the first and second wall parts 36a and 36b. The processing roller 32 is disposed in the area between the first wall part 36a and the second wall part 36b, and a part of it protrudes from the U-shaped opening of the holding part 36.

The die pressurizing cylinder 38 of the die device 31 has a tip of its cylinder rod 38a connected to the connecting wall portion 36c of the holding portion 36, and moves the processing roller 32 together with the holding portion 36 forward and backward in the axial direction of the cylinder rod 38a. The cylinder rod 38a of the die pressurizing cylinder 38 is arranged so that the central axis C1 of the processing roller 32 (which coincides with the center of the support shaft 35) is located on the extension line L of the axial center line.

The mold pressurizing cylinder 38 is composed of an air cylinder. The mold pressurizing cylinder 38 is connected to an air supply source 60 (see FIG. 6) via an air supply path 61. The air supply path 61 is provided with a regulator 62 for adjusting the amount of air supplied to the mold pressurizing cylinder 38. The regulator 62 is controlled by the controller 50, which controls the regulator 62 to adjust the amount of air supplied to the mold pressurizing cylinder 38, thereby adjusting the pressing force of the processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 wrapped around the backup roller 40 to be constant.

The mold pressurizing cylinder 38 has a load sensor 38b for detecting the pressing force of the processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100. The load sensor 38b is built into, for example, the cylinder rod 38a and detects the load applied to the cylinder rod 38a via the processing roller 32, the support shaft 35, and the holding part 36. The controller 50 controls the regulator 62 based on the detection result of the load sensor 38b. Specifically, when the load applied to the cylinder rod 38a is smaller than a predetermined value corresponding to the desired pressing force, the controller 50 controls the regulator 62 to increase the amount of air supplied to the mold pressurizing cylinder 38 and increase the load, while when the load is larger than the predetermined value, the controller 50 controls the regulator 62 to decrease the amount of air supplied to the mold pressurizing cylinder 38 and decrease the load. Thus, the mold pressurizing cylinder 38 and the regulator 62 constitute a pressing device. In addition, "constant pressing force" does not have to be strictly constant, and may be increased or decreased slightly as long as the pressing force is sufficient to press the processing surface 33b of the metal plate 33 of the processing roller 32 against the active material layer 101 of the electrode plate 100 and does not compress and deform the active material layer 101 (excluding deformation due to hole processing).

6, in this embodiment, there is one air supply source 60. The air supply source 60 is connected to the first dancer cylinder 12d, the second dancer cylinder 14d, and each mold pressurizing cylinder 38 by an air supply path 61 via a regulator 62. Specifically, the regulator 62 is provided corresponding to each of the first dancer cylinder 12d, the second dancer cylinder 14d, and each mold pressurizing cylinder 38, and the air supply source 60 and each regulator 62 are connected by an upstream air supply path 61a, while each regulator 62 is connected to the first dancer cylinder 12d, the second dancer cylinder 14d, and each mold pressurizing cylinder 38 by a downstream air supply path 61b. The upstream air supply path 61a is maintained at a constant air pressure higher than the downstream air supply path 61b. The controller 50 controls each regulator 62 to adjust the amount of air sent to the downstream air supply passage 61b, thereby reducing the air pressure in the upstream air supply passage 61a to the desired air pressure and supplying it to each of the first dancer cylinder 12d, the second dancer cylinder 14d, and each mold pressurizing cylinder 38.

The mold device 31 has a rail 39 as a guide when the mold pressure cylinder 38 moves the processing roller 32 forward and backward. The rail 39 extends parallel to the axis of the cylinder rod 38a. The rail 39 engages with the connecting wall portion 36c of the holding portion 36. This causes the processing roller 32 to move so that its central trajectory is parallel to the rail 39.

As shown in FIG. 7, the backup roller 40 is composed of one roller having a width wider than that of the electrode plate 100. The backup roller 40 is fixed to the frame 2 of the processing device 1 via a support shaft 41. The support shaft 41 is connected to a third motor 42. The support shaft 41 is rotated by the third motor 42, causing the backup roller 40 to rotate around its central axis. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 8, the electrode plate 100 is wrapped around the backup roller 40 by more than 1/3 of the circumference of the backup roller 40 so that the conveying direction changes along the surface of the backup roller 40. The axial direction of the backup roller 40 coincides with the width direction of the wrapped electrode plate 100. The backup roller 40 is, for example, a metal roller.

As shown in FIG. 2, the processing mechanism 30 is provided with a cleaning roller 43 for cleaning the processing roller 32. The cleaning roller 43 has a weak adhesive roller and a strong adhesive roller, and the weak adhesive roller collects processing debris and the like that has adhered to the processing roller 32, and the strong adhesive roller collects processing debris and the like that has been collected by the weak adhesive roller.

Next, the arrangement of each die device 31 and the backup roller 40 will be described with reference to Figures 7 and 8. Note that in Figure 7, the support structure of each die device 31 relative to the frame 2 is omitted in order to simplify the drawing.

7, each die device 31 is arranged so that each processing roller 32 is aligned in the width direction of the electrode plate 100 when viewed from the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40, and so that adjacent processing rollers 32 in the width direction are positioned offset from each other in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40. Specifically, each die device 31 is arranged so that each processing roller 32 is arranged in a staggered manner in the width direction of the electrode plate 100 when viewed from the radial direction of the backup roller 40. More specifically, when the die devices 31 are arranged in the order of a first die device 311, a second die device 312, a third die device 313, a fourth die device 314, a fifth die device 315, and a sixth die device 316 from one side (here, the side where the third motor 42 is arranged) of the axial direction of the backup roller 40 (hereinafter, referred to as the backup axial direction) to the other side, the first die device 311, the third die device 313, and the fifth die device 315 are positioned at a first position in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40, and are arranged at equal intervals in the backup axial direction, while the second die device 312, the fourth die device 314, and the sixth die device 316 are positioned at a second position different from the first position in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40, and are arranged at equal intervals in the backup axial direction. The second die device 312 is positioned between the first die device 311 and the third die device 313 in the backup axial direction. The fourth die assembly 314 is located between the third die assembly 313 and the fifth die assembly 315 in the backup axial direction. The sixth die assembly 316 is located on the other side of the fifth die assembly 315 in the backup axial direction.

The first die device 311 and the second die device 312 are arranged so that the distance in the backup axis direction between the protrusion 33a on the other side of the backup axis direction of the processing roller 32 of the first die device 311 and the protrusion 33a on the one side of the backup axis direction of the processing roller 32 of the second die device 312 is the same as the distance between adjacent protrusions 33a in the width direction of each processing roller 32. In this embodiment, the distance between the two protrusions 33a at both ends of the width direction of the processing roller 32 among the protrusions 33a is half the distance between adjacent protrusions 33a in the width direction of the processing roller 32, so that the other side surface in the backup axis direction of the processing roller 32 of the first die device 311 and the one side surface in the backup axis direction of the processing roller 32 of the second die device 312 are arranged so as to be flush with each other, resulting in the above-mentioned arrangement. The second mold apparatus 312 and the third mold apparatus 313, the third mold apparatus 313 and the fourth mold apparatus 314, the fourth mold apparatus 314 and the fifth mold apparatus 315, and the fifth mold apparatus 315 and the sixth mold apparatus 316 are also arranged as described above.

As shown in FIG. 8, the first position and the second position are positions that are 90° different in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40. Specifically, the first position is a position vertically above the backup roller 40, and the second position is a position upstream of the electrode plate 100 in the horizontal direction in the conveying direction. The first to sixth die devices 311 to 316 are each arranged so that each processing roller 32 contacts the part of the electrode plate 100 that is hung on the backup roller 40. The first to sixth die devices 311 to 316 are each arranged so that the central axis C2 of the backup roller 40 is located on the extension line L of the axial center line of the cylinder rod 38a of each die pressure cylinder 38. As a result, the central axis C1 of each processing roller 32 of the first die device 311, the third die device 313, and the fifth die device 315 and the central axis C2 of the backup roller 40 are located in the same vertical plane. In addition, the central axis C1 of each of the processing rollers 32 of the second die device 312, the fourth die device 314, and the sixth die device 316 and the central axis C2 of the backup roller 40 are located in the same horizontal plane. As described above, by arranging the first to sixth die devices 311 to 316, the pressing force generated by each die pressure cylinder 38 can be transmitted from the processing rollers 32 to the electrode plate 100 with almost no reduction. Each processing roller 32 can be pressed against the electrode plate 100 wrapped around the backup roller 40 with a more appropriate pressing force.

Here, as described above, when the processing roller 32 is manufactured by attaching the metal plate 33 to the roller body 32a, the diameter of the processing roller 32 may change due to differences in the amount of adhesive applied, and the roundness of the processing roller 32 may decrease. Even if the amount of adhesive applied is uniform, the end of the metal plate 33 may float from the roller body 32a due to the restoring force of the metal plate 33, or the thickness of the metal plate 33 itself may vary, and the roundness of the processing roller 32 may decrease. It is also possible to process the metal plate 33 so that it can be kept in a shape that fits the roller body 32a, but in addition to increasing manufacturing costs, the metal plate 33 needs to be processed every time maintenance is performed, which may reduce production efficiency. For this reason, it is required to increase the accuracy of hole processing on the electrode plate 100 as much as possible, even if the roundness of the processing roller 32 decreases.

In contrast, in this embodiment, each processing roller 32 is configured by attaching only one metal plate 33, whose width is narrower than that of the electrode plate 100 and which has protrusions 33a, to the roller body 32a. That is, in each processing roller 32, only one metal plate 33 is provided in the axial direction of the processing roller 32. Therefore, each processing roller 32 is less likely to have variation in roundness in the axial direction. In addition, each mold device 31 has a mold pressure cylinder 38. As a result, even if the roundness of each processing roller 32 is reduced due to the return force of the metal plate 33, the mold pressure cylinder 38 can press the processing roller 32 against the processing surface of the electrode plate 100 (the surface on the active material layer 101 side) so that the metal plate 33 of the processing roller 32 properly contacts the electrode plate 100. As a result, the depth of the hole portion 103 formed by the protrusions 33a can be made uniform.

In addition, since each die device 31 independently suspends each processing roller 32, each die pressure cylinder 38 can press each processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 individually. This allows the metal plate 33 of each processing roller 32 to be appropriately contacted with the electrode plate 100 even if the roundness of each processing roller 32 differs from one another. As a result, the depth of the hole 103 formed by the protrusion 33a can be made uniform.

This improves the accuracy of drilling holes into the electrode plate 100.

Furthermore, since the configuration of this embodiment has a structure in which one metal plate 33 is attached to each processing roller 32, when the protrusion 33a of the metal plate 33 is deformed due to wear, it is necessary to replace only the metal plate 33 of the processing roller 32 in which the protrusion 33a is deformed. In this case, even if the roundness deteriorates to some extent, the hole processing accuracy can be made as high as possible by ingenuity of the die device 31, so there is no need to process the metal plate 33 to maintain its shape. This makes it possible to improve the maintainability of the processing roller 32, and ultimately improve productivity.

In addition, this embodiment further includes a controller 50 that controls the operation of each die pressurizing cylinder 38, and the controller 50 controls each die pressurizing cylinder 38 so that the pressing force of each processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 is constant. This allows each processing roller 32 to be pressed against the electrode plate 100 with an appropriate pressing force, making it possible to make the depth of the hole 103 formed by the protrusion 33a more uniform. As a result, the accuracy of hole processing in the electrode plate 100 can be further improved.

In addition, in this embodiment, each die pressurizing cylinder 38 is composed of an air cylinder, and a regulator 62 is provided for adjusting the amount of air supplied to the air cylinder. The controller 50 is configured to adjust the pressing force of each processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 by controlling each regulator 62 to adjust the amount of air supplied to each air cylinder. This allows the pressing force of the processing roller 32 against the electrode plate 100 to be easily and responsively adjusted, thereby further improving the accuracy of hole processing in the electrode plate 100.

In addition, in this embodiment, each mold device 31 is arranged so that the center axis C1 of the processing roller 32 and the center axis C2 of the backup roller 40 are located on the extension line L of the axis of the cylinder rod 38a of each mold pressurizing cylinder 38. That is, when at least one of the center axis C1 of the processing roller 32 and the center axis C2 of the backup roller 40 is not located on the extension line L of the axis of the cylinder rod 38a of each mold pressurizing cylinder 38, the advancing and retreating direction of the mold pressurizing cylinder deviates from the radial direction of the processing roller and the backup roller, so that only a part of the pressing force generated by the mold pressurizing cylinder 38 is transmitted to the electrode plate 100. On the other hand, with the above configuration, since the advancing and retreating direction of the mold pressurizing cylinder becomes the radial direction of the processing roller and the backup roller, the pressing force generated by each mold pressurizing cylinder 38 can be transmitted from the processing roller 32 to the electrode plate 100 with almost no reduction. As a result, each processing roller 32 can be pressed against the electrode plate 100 wrapped around the backup roller 40 with an appropriate pressing force. This allows for greater accuracy in drilling holes in the electrode plate 100.

In particular, in this embodiment, the central axis C1 of each processing roller 32 of the part of the die devices 31 and the central axis C2 of the backup roller 40 are located in the same vertical plane, and the central axis C1 of each processing roller 32 of the remaining die devices 31 and the central axis C2 of the backup roller 40 are located in the same horizontal plane. As a result, the effect of gravity on each processing roller 32 between the part of the die devices 31 is approximately the same, and the effect of gravity on each processing roller 32 between the remaining die devices 31 is approximately the same. As a result, it is possible to facilitate control when the controller 50 controls the regulator 62 taking into account the effect of gravity.

In addition, in this embodiment, the processing rollers 32 adjacent to each other in the width direction of the electrode plate 100 are arranged with their positions shifted in the circumferential direction of the back-up roller 40, and in particular, the processing rollers 32 are arranged in a staggered pattern in the width direction of the electrode plate 100 (the same as the backup axis direction). Some of the multiple die devices 31 (the first die device 311, the third die device 313, and the fifth die device 315) are arranged vertically above the backup roller 40 so that the processing rollers 32 are lined up in the width direction of the electrode plate 100, and the remaining die devices 31 (the second die device 312, the fourth die device 314, and the sixth die device 316) are arranged upstream of the transport direction of the electrode plate 100 in the horizontal direction so that the processing rollers 32 are lined up in the width direction of the electrode plate 100. In this way, by arranging each processing roller 32 in a staggered pattern, even if the support structure for independently suspending each processing roller 32 is relatively large, the gap between the processing rollers 32 in the width direction of the electrode plate 100 can be made as small as possible. This allows the processing rollers 32 to be properly supported, and also prevents linear areas of the processing surface of the electrode plate 100 that are not drilled.

Other Embodiments
The technology disclosed herein is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be substituted without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims.

For example, in the above embodiment, the processing device 1 was described in the case where only one side of the electrode plate 100 is processed. However, this is not limited to this, and another processing mechanism 30 may be provided to process both sides of the electrode plate 100 in which the active material layer 101 is formed on both sides of the current collecting foil 102.

In the above embodiment, the protrusion 33a is conical, and therefore the hole 103 is inverted-edge cone shape. However, the protrusion 33a may be of any shape as long as it can form a bottomed hole, and may be, for example, pyramidal, truncated conical, or truncated pyramidal.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the first position where the first mold device 311, the third mold device 313, and the fifth mold device 315 are arranged and the second position where the second mold device 312, the fourth mold device 314, and the sixth mold device 316 are arranged are positions that differ by 90° in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40. This is not limited to the above, and the angle between the first position and the second position in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40 may be less than 90° as long as the support mechanisms 34 of each mold device 31 do not interfere with each other. In addition, if the range in which the electrode plate 100 is wrapped around the backup roller 40 is widened, the angle between the first position and the second position in the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40 can be made larger than 90°.

In addition, if each processing roller 32 is arranged so as to be adjacent to the width direction of the electrode plate 100 when viewed from the circumferential direction of the backup roller 40, some of the die devices 31 may be arranged at a third position between the first position and the second position (for example, a position at 45° in the circumferential direction of the backup roller). For example, the first die device 311 and the fourth die device 314 may be arranged at the first position, the second die device 312 and the fifth die device 315 may be arranged at the second position, and the third die device 313 and the sixth die device 316 may be arranged at the third position. Figure 9 is a view of the above-mentioned arrangement as seen from the backup axis direction. When viewed from the backup axis direction, the fourth to sixth die devices 314 to 316 have parts of the processing rollers 32 overlapping each other, but in reality, they do not interfere with each other because the positions in the backup axis direction are shifted as described above.

In the above embodiment, the processing roller 32 has only one metal plate 33 attached to it, but this is not limited thereto. When creating a processing roller 32 with a large diameter, as shown in FIG. 10, multiple metal plates 233 may be attached to the processing roller 32 in the circumferential direction. Even in this case, there is only one metal plate 233 in the axial direction of the processing roller 32.

The above-described embodiments are merely examples and should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims, and all modifications and variations that fall within the scope of equivalence of the claims are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The technology disclosed herein is useful as an electrode plate processing device for forming bottomed holes in electrode plates.

1 Electrode plate processing device 10 Unwinding roller 20 Winding roller 32 Processing roller 32a Roller body 33 Metal plate 33a Protrusion 38 Mold pressure cylinder (pressing device)
38a Cylinder rod 40 Backup roller 42 Third motor (drive source)
50 Controller 62 Regulator (pressing device)
100 Electrode plate 103 Hole C1 Central axis of processing roller C2 Central axis of backup roller L Extension line

Claims (5)

An electrode plate processing device for forming a bottomed hole portion in an electrode plate,
an unwinding roller around which the electrode plate before processing is wound and which feeds out the electrode plate;
a plurality of die devices each having a processing roller having a width narrower than the width of the electrode plate and forming the hole portion in the processing surface of the electrode plate;
a backup roller for holding the electrode plate together with each of the processing rollers;
a take-up roller for taking up the electrode plate after processing,
The processing roller is
A cylindrical roller body;
a metal plate attached to a surface of the roller body and having a plurality of protrusions for forming the hole;
having
Only one of the metal plates is provided in each axial direction of the processing roller,
Each of the die devices has the processing roller suspended independently of the other die devices, the processing rollers are arranged so as to be aligned in the width direction of the electrode plate when viewed from the circumferential direction of the backup roller, and each of the die devices has a pressing device that presses the processing roller against the backup roller,
The electrode plate processing apparatus is characterized in that each of the pressing devices is controlled so that the pressing force of each of the processing rollers pressing against the backup roller is uniform . 2. The electrode plate machining apparatus according to claim 1,
A controller for controlling the operation of each of the pressing devices is further provided.
The electrode plate processing device, wherein the controller controls each of the pressing devices so that the pressing force of each of the processing rollers against the electrode plate is constant. 3. The electrode plate machining apparatus according to claim 2,
Each of the pressing devices is
An air cylinder;
A regulator for adjusting the amount of air supplied to the air cylinder;
Each of them has
The electrode plate processing device is characterized in that the controller is configured to adjust the pressing force of each of the processing rollers against the electrode plate by controlling each of the regulators to adjust the amount of air supplied to each of the air cylinders. 4. The electrode plate machining apparatus according to claim 3,
An electrode plate processing apparatus characterized in that each of the die devices is arranged so that the center axis of the processing roller and the center axis of the backup roller are located on an extension of the axial line of the cylinder rod of the air cylinder. In the electrode plate processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An electrode plate processing device characterized in that each of the die devices is arranged so that the processing rollers adjacent to each other in the width direction of the electrode plate are positioned at a circumferential offset direction of the backup roller.