JPH09199110A - Electrolyte injection device and electrolyte injection method in battery manufacturing - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: The present invention relates to a liquid permeation time by injecting a fixed amount of electrolytic solution at a time in a state where the mechanism is simplified, the container main body is downsized, and the container pressure is reliably maintained. (EN) Provided are an electrolytic solution injecting device and an electrolytic solution injecting method in battery manufacturing, which can significantly reduce the workability and improve the workability in battery manufacturing and the performance reliability of the battery. A battery container (K) containing a carrier substance (b) inside is opposed to a lower opening of a sealed chamber body (1), and an electrolytic solution is supplied to a liquid receiving container (6) arranged in the sealed chamber body. The battery container is inserted into the sealed chamber body through the lower opening of the sealed chamber body, and the battery container opening is inserted into the hopper 7. The lower opening of the closed chamber main body is closed by the lower lid, the upper opening is closed by the upper lid, and they are connected by the connecting fixture 14. With these, a completely sealed chamber 15 is formed. After making the closed chamber a negative pressure atmosphere, the electrolytic solution is supplied to the hopper, and the closed chamber is further pressurized so that the electrolytic solution is absorbed by the carrier substance.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrolytic solution injecting apparatus and an electrolytic solution injecting method, which constitute a part of a manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a lithium ion battery and automatically inject an electrolytic solution.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A primary battery in which an electrolyte is absorbed by a porous carrier material or the electrolyte is prevented from flowing by another method is usually called a dry battery. Originally, the name of dry battery is limited to the Luklasche battery, which represents most of the products. Other types include mercury batteries, nickel hydrogen batteries, alkaline zinc-manganese dioxide batteries, air rechargeable batteries, and the like. In these batteries, basically, an electrolyte in the form of an aqueous solution is absorbed in a carrier substance or gelled to prevent the carrier substance from flowing.

For example, even in a lithium ion battery,
The basic structure is the same. The outline of the process for manufacturing this type of battery will be described. As shown in FIG. 5B, a carrier substance a is manufactured. This is one in which a (plus) electrode sheet, a (minus) electrode sheet, and a separator cell interposed between these sheets are superposed and integrated.

It is generally porous and is formed, for example, in a rectangular shape. An electrode b, which is a small piece, is fixed to the upper end portion by an appropriate means. The carrier substance a is tightly wound from one side end in the longitudinal direction, and finally forms one columnar body.

Then, as shown in FIG. 1A, the columnar carrier material a is forcibly inserted into the battery container K having a cylindrical shape with a bottom through the opening portion of the top surface and filled therein. The electrode b has a length protruding upward from the upper edge of the battery container K.

The electrolyte solution is injected from the injection nozzle into the battery container K containing the carrier substance a. Although the carrier substance a is porous, the battery is tightly wound. It is forcibly inserted into the container K.

Therefore, the air contained therein will block the escape area with the electrolytic solution, and the electrolytic solution will not easily penetrate into the carrier substance. The difference between the upper surface of the carrier material and the upper edge of the battery container is very small, and the amount of electrolyte that can be injected at one time while avoiding overflow is also small.

Therefore, in the actual electrolyte injection work, the liquid is injected to the extent that overflow does not occur, and after confirming that the complete permeation has been performed, a small amount of the electrolyte that does not overflow again is injected.

[0009]

Thus, the liquid injection is performed several times and completed. After injecting a small amount of the electrolytic solution, it is allowed to stand under atmospheric pressure to obtain a penetrating action, and this is repeated, so that it takes much time and the workability is poor.

Further, the amount of the electrolytic solution to be permeated into the carrier substance in the battery container is obtained by calculation, and if the amount is excessive or insufficient, a predetermined battery performance can be obtained. I can't.

Therefore, the electrolyte must be weighed each time the solution is injected, and the total amount injected into each battery container must be measured. Even if automatic measurement is performed, it is troublesome and troublesome, and as a problem before that, an error of the pump for injecting the electrolytic solution is accumulated, so that it is difficult to improve the injection accuracy.

Recently, in order to shorten the injection time of the electrolytic solution,
A vacuum pressure container having a hopper inside is prepared, and the battery container is housed in this container. Then, the opening of the battery container is connected to the hopper to make the inside of the container a vacuum state, the inside of the battery container is evacuated, and then the electrolytic solution is injected into the hopper, and the inside of the container is further pressurized to permeate the electrolytic solution. An electrolyte injecting device has been developed.

In this case, however, an air cylinder is provided in the container as a driving means for accommodating the battery container in the vacuum pressurizing container and taking it out after injecting the electrolytic solution, or a drive shaft is inserted into the container from the outside of the container. Was made possible by.

In this case, the pipes, wirings, sensors and the like relating to the driving means must be arranged in the container,
There are many problems that it is difficult to circulate pipes and wires, and air is easily leaked from the cylinders and joints during evacuation, making it difficult to raise the degree of vacuum.

Similarly, at the time of pressurization, the thrust of the air cylinder may drop, and the connection between the hopper and the battery container may become insufficient. Then, the mist of the corrosive electrolytic solution fills the container.

The above-mentioned container naturally has an opening, and the opening is closed by a lid when pressure is applied or vacuumed. In particular, when the inside of the container is pressurized, the entire area of the lid is closed. Pressure is applied. The drive source of the lid having a thrust capable of withstanding it becomes large.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to simplify a mechanism and
With a compact container body and reliable container pressure retention, a fixed amount of electrolyte is injected at one time to greatly reduce the liquid penetration time, which improves workability in battery manufacturing and performance reliability for batteries. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrolytic solution injecting device and an electrolytic solution injecting method in battery production, which can improve the battery.

In order to achieve the above object, an electrolytic solution injecting apparatus for manufacturing a battery according to the first aspect of the present invention is as follows.
An electrolyte injection device in a battery manufacturing in which a porous carrier substance is filled in a battery container having an opening at one end, and an electrolyte is injected from the opening side of the battery container to be absorbed by the carrier substance. A closed chamber body having an opening at
A vacuum evacuation unit that is connected to the peripheral wall of the sealed chamber body and evacuates the inside and a pressurizing unit that pressurizes the inside, a liquid receiving unit that is housed in the sealed chamber body and receives the electrolytic solution, and the liquid receiving unit. And an auxiliary injection means for receiving the electrolytic solution from the one end side opening of the closed chamber main body, which supports the battery container in which a carrier substance is filled, and the supporting portion has the one end side opening. Is openable and closable, with respect to the container support means for inserting the opening of the battery container into the auxiliary injection means in a state where the opening on the one end side is closed, and the opening on the other end side of the sealed chamber body. A liquid supply means that is provided so as to move back and forth and that supplies an electrolytic solution to the liquid receiving means, an opening and closing means that can open and close the opening on the other end side of the storage chamber, and the opening and closing means and the container supporting means are a closed chamber. With each means in the state that the both end side openings of the main body are closed Characterized by comprising a connecting means for connecting and fixing the closed from body.

A second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the container supporting means according to the first aspect includes a transport mechanism for transporting the battery container and an elevating mechanism for vertically driving the battery container. As a third aspect, the liquid receiving means according to the first aspect is
It is characterized in that it is on the opposite side of the container supporting means with the auxiliary injecting means interposed therebetween, and is rotatably supported, and the electrolyte solution received by rotating is injected into the auxiliary injecting means.

In order to satisfy the same object, a method of injecting an electrolytic solution in battery production according to a second aspect of the present invention is, as a fourth aspect, carrying a battery container containing a carrier substance therein and opening the one end side opening of the sealed chamber body. Opposing transfer step, supply step of supplying the electrolytic solution to the liquid receiving means arranged in the closed chamber main body, inserting the battery container into the closed chamber main body through the one end side opening, A sealing step of inserting the battery opening into the auxiliary injecting means arranged in the main body and sealing the one end side opening and the other end side opening of the sealed chamber body, and a vacuum atmosphere in the sealed chamber body. Then, a vacuum evacuation step of absorbing and removing the carrier substance and the gas contained in the battery container, and a delivering step of delivering the electrolytic solution of the liquid receiving means to the auxiliary injecting means,
Based on the step of pressurizing the inside of the sealed chamber body to absorb the electrolytic solution of the liquid receiving means into the carrier substance, and the absorption of the electrolytic solution into the carrier substance, the battery container from the sealed chamber body. And a step of opening both end side openings of the closed chamber main body.

By providing the means for solving the above problems, in both the first and second inventions, the battery container containing the carrier substance therein is opposed to the one end side opening of the sealed chamber body, The electrolytic solution is supplied to the liquid receiving means in the sealed chamber main body, the battery container is inserted into the sealed chamber main body through the one end side opening, and the battery container opening is inserted into the auxiliary injection means and the sealed chamber main body After closing the openings on both ends and making the inside of the closed chamber a negative pressure atmosphere, the electrolyte is supplied to the auxiliary injection means, and the inside of the closed chamber is pressurized to absorb the electrolyte into the carrier substance and seal the battery container. Pull out from the chamber body and open the openings on both ends of the sealed chamber body.

[0022]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an electrolyte injection device used during a battery manufacturing process. In the figure, 1 is a closed chamber main body, and the upper and lower ends thereof are open, and only the peripheral wall exists. The exhaust pipe 2 and the pressurizing pipe 3 are connected to a part of the peripheral wall.

A vacuum pump 4 is connected to the end of the exhaust pipe 2 and constitutes a vacuum exhaust means. A pressurizing pump 5 is connected to the end portion of the pressurizing pipe 3, and these constitute a pressurizing means.

A liquid receiving container 6 as a liquid receiving means is arranged in the closed chamber body 1. The liquid receiving container 6 has an open upper surface and has a capacity for storing the electrolytic solution injected into one battery container K. The lower surface is provided with a pivotal support 6a,
It is rotatable.

A hopper 7, which is an auxiliary injecting container as an auxiliary injecting means, is arranged below the liquid receiving container 6. The hopper 7 has a so-called funnel shape in which the upper surface has a large opening area and the lower surface has a small opening area.

In particular, the lower surface opening is set to a size and shape that fits into the upper surface opening of the battery container K. The capacity of the hopper 7 has a margin that is sufficiently larger than the capacity of the electrolytic solution injected into one battery container K.

Flanges 1a and 1b are integrally provided along the periphery of the upper and lower openings of the closed chamber body 1, and an upper lid 8 and a lower lid 9 which are lids having the same diameter as those of the flanges 1a and 1b. And are arranged to face each other.

The upper lid 8 is integrally provided at the end of the operating rod of the upper air cylinder 10 with the operating rod 10a projecting downward, and is moved forward and backward so that it can be attached to and detached from the upper flange portion 1a of the sealed chamber body 1. It is supposed to be done. These top lids 8
The upper air cylinder 10 and the upper air cylinder 10 constitute an opening / closing means.

The lower lid 9 is integrally provided at the end of the operating rod of the lower air cylinder 11 having the operating rod 11a projecting upward, and is movable back and forth with respect to the lower flange portion 11 of the closed chamber main body 1 so that it can be freely moved. It is designed to be driven. These lower lids 9
The lower air cylinder 11 constitutes a container supporting means.

The lower lid 9 supports a carrying jig 12 for holding the battery container K. That is, the upper surface portion that forms the support portion of the lower lid 9 has the transport mechanism 13 arranged on both sides thereof.
It is formed to have the same height as the above, and a carrying jig 12 for holding the battery container K is sequentially carried and arranged on the lower lid 9.

Upper and lower flange portions 1a, 1 of the closed chamber body 1
b Along the circumference, connecting fixtures 14, 14 which are connecting means
Is arranged. The connecting fixture 14 has a U-shaped cross-section, and its diameter can be freely increased or decreased with respect to the closed chamber body 1.

That is, the U-shaped portion of the connecting fixture 14 is dimensioned so that it can be inserted into the upper and lower flange portions 1a and 1b of the closed chamber body 1 with the upper lid 8 and the lower lid 9 in contact with each other. It Then, when the upper and lower lids 8 and 9 are in contact with and overlapped with the respective flange portions 1a and 1b, the connecting fixture 14 is inserted and fitted to surely connect and fix these members.

As will be described later, the closed chamber 15, which is a closed space formed by the closed chamber body 1 and the upper and lower lids 8 and 9, is evacuated to a negative pressure or pressurized to a high pressure. In each case, each connecting fixture 14, 14 does not cause a slight gap between each member, and the sealed chamber 15 is completely sealed, so that the vacuum / pressurization conditions are not impaired.

On the other hand, in the vicinity of the upper opening of the closed chamber body 1,
A nozzle 16 as a liquid supply means for supplying an electrolytic solution is arranged so as to be able to move forward and backward. The nozzle 16 communicates with an electrolytic solution tank (not shown) and faces the opening of the liquid receiving container 6 from the vicinity of the closed chamber main body 1 in a state where the upper lid 8 is separated from the upper flange 1a. The position is moved as shown.

Then, as described above with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B, the carrier substance a is mounted and filled in the battery container K. Then, as shown in FIG. 2A, the battery container K is transported by the transport mechanism 13 and placed on the lower lid 9.

At this time, the lower lid 9 is separated from the lower flange portion 1b of the closed chamber body 1, and the upper lid 8 is separated from the closed chamber body upper flange portion 1a. Naturally, the upper and lower connecting fixtures 14, 14 are the upper and lower flange portions 1.
It is located apart from a and 1b.

With the position of the battery container K held, as shown in FIG. 2B, the nozzle 16 for supplying the electrolytic solution is moved to the liquid receiving container 6 with the upper lid 8 left open. Face each other and pour out the electrolyte.

As soon as a predetermined amount of the electrolytic solution is poured out, the nozzle 16 for supplying the electrolytic solution is returned to the original position. Then, FIG. 3 (C)
As shown in, the operating rod 11a of the lower air cylinder 11
And the lower cover 9 is brought into contact with the lower chamber main body flange portion 1b. In this state, the opening of the battery container K on the lower lid 9 is fitted into the lower opening of the hopper 7.

On the other hand, the operating rod 1 of the upper air cylinder 10
0a is projected and the upper lid 8 is attached to the upper chamber flange portion 1 of the closed chamber body.
a. The upper and lower connecting fixtures 14, 14 move at a timing, and the upper and lower lids 8, 9 and the respective flange portions 1 are moved.
Fix a and 1b closely.

Therefore, the closed chamber body 1 and the upper and lower lids 8 and 9
A closed chamber 15 which is a closed space is formed by and. And
The vacuum pump 4 is driven to change the closed chamber 15 into a negative pressure atmosphere. The vacuum pump 4 is timer-controlled, and is driven and stopped for a predetermined time.

The closed chamber 15 is in a completely negative pressure state, and accordingly, not only the liquid container 6 but also the battery container K is in a negative pressure state. Therefore, the electrolytic solution collected in the liquid receiving container 6, the air inside the battery container K, and the air impregnating the carrier substance a filled therein are completely absorbed and removed.

As shown in FIG. 3D, the closed state of the closed chamber 15 is maintained, the liquid receiving container 6 is rotated and tilted in a predetermined direction, and the electrolytic solution collected therein flows out to the hopper 7. . When the transfer of all the electrolytic solution is completed, the liquid receiving container 6 is returned to the original posture.

Although the hopper 7 and the inside of the battery container K communicate with each other through their openings, the electrolytic solution does not easily penetrate into the carrier substance a because the closed chamber 15 is still in a negative pressure state. . Therefore, the minimum liquid level of the electrolytic solution remains in the hopper 7 and the upper surface of the carrier substance a coincides with it.

As shown in FIG. 4 (E), a pressure pump (not shown) is driven to change the closed chamber 15 to a high pressure state. Therefore, a high pressure is applied to the upper portion of the electrolytic solution in the hopper 7, while a negative pressure state is maintained on the side of the carrier material a, which is the lower portion of the electrolytic solution, and a significant pressure difference occurs between the upper and lower portions of the electrolytic solution as a boundary. .

The electrolytic solution rapidly moves in response to this remarkable pressure difference and is absorbed by the carrier substance a. And finally,
All the electrolytic solution is completely absorbed by the carrier substance a, and the injection is completed.

As shown in FIG. 6F, the connecting fixture 14 is moved from the fixing portion at a timing to return it to its original position, and the upper lid 8 and the lower lid 9 are retracted to their original positions. Then, the transfer mechanism 13 is driven to transfer the battery container K on the lower lid 9 to a predetermined portion.

After all, it is possible to inject the electrolytic solution into the battery container K filled with the carrier substance a in a relatively short time by supplying the electrolytic solution once, so that the working time can be shortened and the reliable solution without bubbles can be obtained. Implantation provides improved reliability in battery manufacturing.

[0048]

As described above, according to the present invention, the battery container whose inside is filled with the carrier substance is supported on the lower lid facing the opening on the one end side of the sealed chamber body and faces the opening on the other end side. In a state where the opening is closed together with the upper lid, the electrolytic solution is supplied to the battery container, the closed space is made into a negative pressure atmosphere, and further pressure is applied to generate a pressure difference between both ends of the electrolytic solution, and the electrolytic solution is used as a carrier material. Absorb.

Therefore, since the drive unit is not provided in the closed chamber main body, piping and wiring are facilitated, and the mechanism can be simplified. Since the drive sources for the upper and lower lids and the means for connecting the upper and lower lids to the container body are separately provided, the peripheral portion of the body becomes small, and the device can be downsized. The pressure in the closed chamber does not directly reach the drive source of the upper and lower lids, and the pressure is reliably maintained.

Then, a predetermined amount of the electrolytic solution can be injected into the battery container at one time, and the workability is good. The time required for liquid permeation is significantly shortened, workability in battery production is improved, and bubbles are not left in the carrier substance, so that performance reliability of the battery can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an electrolyte injection device showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are views for sequentially explaining injection of an electrolytic solution.

3C and 3D are views sequentially illustrating injection of an electrolytic solution, following FIG. 2B.

FIGS. 4 (E) and 4 (F) are views sequentially illustrating injection of an electrolytic solution, following FIG. 3 (D).

FIG. 5A is a diagram in which a carrier substance is inserted and filled in a battery container. (B) is an operation explanatory view of winding a carrier substance to be inserted into a battery container.

[Explanation of symbols]

 K ... Battery container, a ... Carrier material, 1 ... Closed chamber body, 4 ... Vacuum pump, 5 ... Pressurizing pump, 6 ... Liquid receiving container, 7 ... Hopper, 9 ... Lower lid, 11 ... Lower air cylinder, 8 ... Upper lid, 10 ... Upper air cylinder, 16 ... Nozzle, 14 ... Connection fixture, 13 ... Transport mechanism.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An electrolyte injection in battery manufacturing, in which a porous carrier material is filled in a battery container having an opening at one end, and the electrolyte is injected from the opening side of the battery container to be absorbed by the carrier material. In the apparatus, a closed chamber main body having openings at both ends thereof, a vacuum exhaust unit connected to the peripheral wall of the closed chamber main unit for vacuum exhausting the inside and a pressurizing unit for pressurizing the inside, are housed in the closed chamber main body. A liquid receiving means for receiving the electrolytic solution, an auxiliary injecting means for receiving the electrolytic solution from the liquid receiving means, and a battery arranged to face the one end side opening of the sealed chamber body and filled with a carrier substance inside Container supporting means for supporting the container, the supporting portion of which is capable of opening and closing the one end side opening, and inserting the opening of the battery container into the auxiliary injecting means with the one end side opening closed. Of the above closed chamber body A liquid supply means that is provided so as to be able to move forward and backward with respect to the end side opening portion and that supplies the electrolytic solution to the liquid receiving means; an opening and closing means that can open and close the other end side opening portion of the storage chamber; An electrolytic solution injecting device in battery production, comprising: a connecting means for connecting and fixing each means and the closed chamber body in a state where the container supporting means closes both end side openings of the closed chamber body. 2. The electrolytic solution injecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the container supporting means comprises a carrying mechanism for carrying the battery container and an elevating mechanism for vertically moving the battery container. 3. The liquid receiving means is on the opposite side of the container supporting means with the auxiliary injecting means interposed therebetween, and is rotatably supported, and the electrolyte solution received by rotating is auxiliary auxiliary injecting means. The electrolyte injection device for battery production according to claim 1, wherein the injection device is injected into the electrolyte. 4. A carrying step of carrying a battery container containing a carrier substance therein so as to face an opening on one end side of the sealed chamber body, and supplying an electrolytic solution to a liquid receiving means arranged in the sealed chamber body. And a supply step of inserting the battery container into the closed chamber main body through the one end side opening, and inserting the battery opening into the auxiliary injection means arranged in the closed chamber main body and the above-mentioned closed chamber main body. A hermetically sealing step of hermetically sealing the one end side opening and the other end side opening; and a vacuum exhausting step of absorbing and removing the gas contained in the carrier substance and the battery container by creating a vacuum atmosphere in the hermetically sealed chamber body, A delivering step of delivering the electrolytic solution of the liquid receiving means to the auxiliary injecting means, a pressurizing step of pressurizing the inside of the closed chamber main body to absorb the electrolytic solution of the liquid receiving means into the carrier substance, and an electrolysis to the carrier substance. Due to the absorption of the liquid, seal the battery container above. Electrolyte injection method in a cell manufacturing which is characterized by comprising a step of releasing the both end side opening of the sealed chamber main body with withdrawn from the chamber body.