JP2020171930A - Laser welding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a laser welding apparatus capable of preventing a resin holding portion from being damaged by a laser beam passing through a concave groove while providing a concave groove in a metal pressing portion. A laser welding apparatus 1 has a laser irradiation unit 20, a metal pressing portion 51 that presses a case side surface 113 of a case body member 111 toward a case lid member 115, and a case body member that abuts on the case side surface 113. A resin holding portion 81 for holding the 111 is provided. The metal pressing portion 51 is recessed in the pressing surface 51e and has a concave groove 53 that opens on one side surface 51f facing one side ZH1 of the first direction ZH. It is configured to prevent the metal pressing portion 51 from being directly irradiated to the resin holding portion 81 located on the other side ZH2 of the first direction ZH through the 53. [Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

The present invention relates to a laser welding apparatus that forms a rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped case by laser welding a bottomed square tubular case body member and a rectangular plate-shaped case lid member over the entire circumference.

In the process of manufacturing a so-called square battery, a rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped battery case is generally formed by laser welding a bottomed square tubular case body member and a rectangular plate-shaped case lid member. Specifically, as the laser welding device, a laser welding device including a metal pressing portion that presses the side surface of the case of the case main body member is prepared in addition to the laser irradiation portion that irradiates the laser beam.

Then, after arranging the case lid member in the opening of the case body member to form the pre-welding battery, the case side surface of the case body member is pressed inward (case lid member side) by the above-mentioned metal pressing portion. , The opening of the case body member is brought closer to the peripheral edge of the case lid member, and the size of the case gap between the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member is adjusted.
After that, the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member are irradiated with laser light over the entire circumference, and the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member are welded over the entire circumference to form a battery case. Form. In addition, as a related prior art, for example, Patent Document 1 can be mentioned (see FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 5, claim 1 and the like of Patent Document 1).

JP 2015-188901

By the way, the present inventor has further provided a resin holding portion in the above-mentioned laser welding apparatus in order to make it possible to move the pre-welding battery and change the direction of the pre-welding battery (upside down, etc.). It was examined that the resin holding portion was brought into contact with the case side surface of the case main body member, and the case main body member was held by the resin holding portion to hold the pre-welding battery. Specifically, the laser irradiation portion is arranged above the case lid member, the resin holding portion is arranged below the metal pressing portion, and the case main body member is arranged below the metal pressing portion with the resin holding portion. Invented to hold. The reason why this holding portion is made of resin is to prevent the case main body member from being damaged or metal foreign matter from being generated due to rubbing between the holding portion and the case main body member when holding the case main body member. Is.

Further, in laser welding, the present inventor positions the above-mentioned metal pressing portion in order to irradiate the welding target portion (the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member) with laser light with high position accuracy. It was considered to provide a recessed groove. Specifically, the concave groove is recessed in the pressing surface of the metal pressing portion that abuts and presses against the case side surface of the case body member, and the concave groove is formed from one side surface (upper surface) of the metal pressing portion to the other. The form extends to the side surface (lower surface) (penetrates the metal pressing portion).

In addition, a camera is installed above the case lid member, and the vicinity of the concave groove is imaged by this camera. In this image, since the difference in brightness between the concave groove, the upper surface of the metal pressing portion, and the opening of the case main body member is large, the position of the opening of the case main body member can be appropriately specified. As a result, the laser beam can be applied to the welding target portion (the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member) with high position accuracy.

However, the above-mentioned concave groove penetrates the metal pressing portion. Therefore, when the laser beam is misaligned during welding, the laser beam is directly applied to the resin holding portion located below the metal pressing portion through the concave groove provided in the metal pressing portion. , It has been found that the resin holding part may be damaged by the laser beam.

The present invention has been made in view of the present situation, and in a laser welding apparatus provided with a metal pressing portion and a resin holding portion, a laser that has passed through the concave groove while providing a concave groove in the metal pressing portion. It is an object of the present invention to provide a laser welding apparatus capable of preventing the resin holding portion from being damaged by light.

One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a case main body member having a bottomed square cylinder having a rectangular opening and being arranged in the opening of the case main body member to close the opening. A laser welding device that forms a rectangular box-shaped case by laser welding a rectangular plate-shaped case lid member over the entire circumference, and is arranged on one side in a first direction orthogonal to the case lid member. The laser beam is emitted toward the other side in the first direction and irradiates the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member, and is made of metal and is composed of the case body member. A metal pressing portion that presses the side surface of the case surrounding the opening toward the case lid member side to bring the opening of the case body member closer to the peripheral edge of the case lid member, and a resin, which is made of the metal. The metal pressing portion is provided with a resin holding portion that is arranged on the other side of the pressing portion in the first direction, abuts on the case side surface of the case body member, and holds the case body member. The case body member has a concave groove that is recessed in a pressing surface that abuts and presses against the side surface of the case and opens on one side surface that faces the one side in the first direction. The concave groove is the laser. The laser beam emitted from the irradiation unit toward the other side in the first direction is directly irradiated to the resin holding portion located on the other side of the metal pressing portion through the concave groove. This is a laser welding device that is designed to prevent metal shavings.

In the above-mentioned laser welding apparatus, since the case main body member is held by the resin holding portion made of resin, it is possible to prevent the case main body member from being damaged or metal foreign matter from being generated during holding. In addition, since the metal pressing portion is provided with a concave groove, by using this concave groove, the laser beam is applied to the welding target part (the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member) for position accuracy. Can be irradiated well. Further, the concave groove is formed to prevent the laser beam from being directly irradiated to the resin holding portion through the concave groove. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the resin holding portion from being damaged by the laser light directly hitting the resin holding portion.

Further, in the above laser welding apparatus, the concave groove is located on the one side of the first direction, opens on the one side surface of the metal pressing portion, and extends in the first direction. And, located on the other side of the one-sided recess in the first direction, branching from the one-sided recess, extending diagonally in opposite directions to the first direction, among the metal pressing portions. It is preferable to use a laser welding apparatus including two recesses on the other side which are opened on the other side surface facing the other side in the first direction.

In the above-mentioned laser welding apparatus, the concave groove provided in the metal pressing portion is composed of a one-sided recess and two other-sided recesses branching from the one-sided recess and extending diagonally in opposite directions as described above. Make it a form. By adopting such a form, it is easy to make the concave groove into a form for preventing the laser beam passing through the concave groove from being directly irradiated to the resin holding portion as described above.

Alternatively, in the above laser welding apparatus, the concave groove is located on the one side of the first direction, opens on the one side surface of the metal pressing portion, and extends in the first direction. A laser welding apparatus comprising the other side recess located on the other side of the one side recess in the first direction and having an inclined bottom surface inclined toward the pressing surface of the metal pressing portion. Is preferable.

In the above-mentioned laser welding apparatus, the concave groove provided in the metal pressing portion has a form including one side concave portion and the other side concave portion having an inclined bottom surface inclined toward the pressing surface as described above. Even if such a form is adopted, it is easy to form the concave groove in a form for preventing the laser beam passing through the concave groove from being directly irradiated to the resin holding portion as described above.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the laser welding apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view of the laser welding apparatus according to the first embodiment as viewed from above of a welding jig. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2 of the welding jig according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway sectional view taken along line BB of the welding jig according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line CC of FIG. 3 of the welding jig according to the first embodiment. It is a top view of the welding jig which concerns on Embodiment 1 as seen from above of the battery holding part. According to the first embodiment, (a) is a partially enlarged plan view seen from above, and (b) is a partially enlarged side view seen from the inside (battery side) of a portion near the concave groove. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion in the vicinity of the concave groove according to the first embodiment. According to the second embodiment, (a) is a partially enlarged plan view seen from above, and (b) is a partially enlarged side view seen from the inside (battery side) of the portion near the concave groove. FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion in the vicinity of the concave groove according to the second embodiment. In relation to the comparative form, (a) is a partially enlarged plan view seen from above, and (b) is a partially enlarged side view seen from the inside (battery side) of the portion near the concave groove. It is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the portion in the vicinity of the concave groove according to the comparative form.

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the laser welding apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment. In the following, the Z direction (first direction) ZH which is the vertical direction of the laser welding apparatus 1, the X direction XH orthogonal to the Z direction ZH, the Z direction ZH, and the Y direction YH orthogonal to the X direction XH are shown in the drawings. The description will be given in the direction shown in 1.

The laser welding device 1 is a device that forms the battery case 110 of the battery 100 by laser welding. First, the battery 100 to be welded will be described (see FIG. 1). The battery 100 is a square sealed battery mounted on a vehicle such as a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle. The battery 100 includes a battery case 110 having a rectangular parallelepiped box shape and made of metal (specifically, aluminum). The battery case 110 includes a case body member 111 having a bottomed square tube shape, and a rectangular plate-shaped case lid member 115 that is arranged in the rectangular opening 111h of the case body member 111 and closes the opening 111h. Consists of. The case body member 111 has a case bottom surface 112 and four case side surfaces 113 (first case side surface 113a, second case side surface 113b, third case side surface 113c, and fourth case side surface 113d) surrounding the opening 111h.

An electrode body, an electrolytic solution, and the like (not shown) are housed in the case body member 111, and a positive electrode terminal member 120 and a negative electrode terminal member 130 are fixedly provided in the case lid member 115. As will be described later, the battery case 110 is formed by laser welding the opening 111h of the case body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115 over the entire circumference using the laser welding device 1. Will be done. In this laser welding, as shown in FIG. 1, the case lid member 115 of the pre-welding battery 100x faces ZH1 above (one side) in the Z direction ZH, and the case bottom surface 112 of the case body member 111 is in the Z direction ZH. It is performed in a posture facing downward (the other side) ZH2.

Next, the laser welding apparatus 1 of the first embodiment will be described (see FIG. 1). The laser welding device 1 is composed of a laser oscillator 10, a laser irradiation unit 20, an imaging unit 30, a control unit 35, a welding jig 40, and the like.
Of these, the laser irradiation unit 20 is connected to the laser oscillator 10 via an optical fiber 15 and is arranged above ZH1 of the case lid member 115 of the pre-welding battery 100x. The laser irradiation unit 20 is a device that deflects and emits the laser beam LB input from the laser oscillator 10 toward the pre-welding battery 100x. Specifically, the laser irradiation unit 20 has a collimating lens, a galvano scanner, a condenser lens, a Z lens, a protective glass, etc. (not shown) inside the laser irradiation unit 20, and the laser light is instructed by the control unit 35 described later. The LB is emitted downward toward ZH2 and irradiates the opening 111h of the case body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115.

The imaging unit 30 is a device that images a portion in the vicinity of the concave groove 53 provided in the metal pressing unit 51, which will be described later. The imaging unit 30 includes a light 31 that illuminates a portion near the recessed groove 53 described above from above ZH1, and a CCD camera 33 that images a portion near the recessed groove 53 illuminated by the light 31 from above ZH1. The information of the image captured by the imaging unit 30 is output to the control unit 35.

The control unit 35 includes a CPU, ROM, and RAM (not shown), and has a microcomputer that is operated by a predetermined control program stored in the ROM or the like. The control unit 35 determines the irradiation conditions of the laser beam LB based on the image information input from the image pickup unit 30, and controls the laser oscillator 10 and the laser irradiation unit 20. Specifically, the control unit 35 identifies the recessed groove 53 and the opening 111h of the case body member 111 adjacent thereto based on the input image information, and further specifies the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the case. The position and size of the case gap KG (see FIG. 7) with the peripheral edge portion 115s of the lid member 115 are specified.

In the image obtained by illuminating the portion near the concave groove 53 with the light 31, the difference in brightness between the concave groove 53 and the upper surface 51f of the metal pressing portion 51 and the opening 111h of the case body member 111, which will be described later, is large. The groove 53 and the opening 111h of the case body member 111 adjacent thereto can be appropriately identified. Next, the irradiation conditions of the laser light LB are determined based on the position and size of the case gap KG described above, and the laser oscillator 10 and the laser irradiation unit 20 are controlled based on the irradiation conditions. As a result, the laser beam LB can be irradiated to the welding target portion (the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115) with high position accuracy.

Next, the welding jig 40 will be described. FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the welding jig 40, and FIGS. 3 to 5 show a partially broken cross-sectional view of the welding jig 40. Further, FIG. 6 shows a plan view of the battery holding portion 70 of the welding jig 40. Note that FIGS. 2 to 6 show a state in which the pre-welding battery 100x is set in the welding jig 40. The welding jig 40 is arranged in the upper ZH1 during laser welding, and has a battery pressing portion 50 that presses the case side surface 113 of the case body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x toward the case lid member 115, and the battery. It is arranged in the lower ZH2 of the pressing portion 50, and is composed of a battery holding portion 70 that abuts on the side surface 113 of the case and holds the case main body member 111.

The battery pressing portion 50 is a four metal pressing portion 51 (first metal pressing portion 51a, which presses each of the case side surfaces 113 (113a, 113b, 113c, 113d) of the case body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x. It has a second metal pressing portion 51b, a third metal pressing portion 51c, and a fourth metal pressing portion 51d). Further, the battery pressing portion 50 is provided with four actuators 61 (first actuator 61a, second actuator 61b, third actuator 61c and fourth actuator 61d) for moving the metal pressing portions 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), respectively. ).

Of these, the first metal pressing portion 51a is arranged on one side XH1 of the pre-welding battery 100x in the X direction XH, and the second metal pressing portion 51b is arranged on the other side XH2 of the pre-welding battery 100x in the X direction XH. .. The third metal pressing portion 51c is arranged on one side YH1 of the pre-welding battery 100x in the Y direction YH, and the fourth metal pressing portion 51d is arranged on the other side YH2 of the pre-welding battery 100x in the Y direction YH. .. Further, the first actuator 61a is attached to the first metal pressing portion 51a so that the first metal pressing portion 51a can be moved in the X direction XH, and the second actuator 61b is a second metal pressing portion. It is attached to the second metal pressing portion 51b so that the 51b can be moved in the X direction XH. Further, the third actuator 61c is attached to the third metal pressing portion 51c so that the third metal pressing portion 51c can be moved in the Y direction YH, and the fourth actuator 61d is attached to the fourth metal pressing portion 51c. It is attached to the fourth metal pressing portion 51d so that the 51d can be moved in the Y direction YH.

Each metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) has a pressing surface 51e (51ae, 51be, 51ce, 51de) facing the pre-welding battery 100x side and an upper surface (one side surface) 51f (51af) facing upward ZH1. , 51bf, 51cf, 51df) and a lower surface (the other side surface) facing the lower ZH2, 51g (51ag, 51bg, 51cg, 51df). The pressing surfaces 51e (51ae, 51be, 51ce, 51de) of each metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) abut against the case side surface 113 (113a, 113b, 113c, 113d) of the case body member 111. , The case side surface 113 (113a, 113b, 113c, 113d) is pressed toward the case lid member 115 to bring the opening 111h of the case body member 111 closer to the peripheral edge portion 115s of the case lid member 115.

Specifically, the pressing surface 51ae of the first metal pressing portion 51a abuts on the first case side surface 113a and presses the first case side surface 113a against the other side XH2 in the X direction XH. Further, the pressing surface 51be of the second metal pressing portion 51b abuts on the second case side surface 113b and presses the second case side surface 113b on one side XH1 of the X direction XH. Further, the pressing surface 51ce of the third metal pressing portion 51c abuts on the third case side surface 113c and presses the third case side surface 113c on the other side YH2 in the Y direction YH. Further, the pressing surface 51de of the fourth metal pressing portion 51d abuts on the fourth case side surface 113d, and presses the fourth case side surface 113d on one side YH1 of the Y direction YH.

As described above, due to the metal pressing portions 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), the size of the case gap KG between the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115 is appropriate over the entire circumference. It is adjusted to a large size.
In the lower ZH2 of each metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), a resin holding portion 81 (first resin holding portion 81a, second resin holding portion 81a) of the battery holding portion 70, which will be described later, is located. 81b, a third resin holding portion 81c and a fourth resin holding portion 81d) are arranged.

The metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) has one or two concave grooves 53 (first concave groove 53a, second concave groove 53b, third concave groove 53c, and fourth concave groove 53d), respectively. ) Is provided. FIG. 7 (a) shows a partially enlarged plan view of a portion near the concave groove 53 (first concave groove 53a) viewed from above ZH1, and FIG. 7 (b) shows the concave groove 53 (first concave groove 53a). A partially enlarged side view of a nearby portion as viewed from the inside (battery 100x side before welding) is shown. Further, FIG. 8 shows a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion in the vicinity of the concave groove 53 (first concave groove 53a).

Specifically, the first metal pressing portion 51a is provided with the first concave groove 53a in the center of the pressing surface 51ae in the Y direction YH, and the second metal pressing portion 51b is provided with the Y of the pressing surface 51be. It is recessed in the second concave groove 53b in the center of the direction YH. Further, the third metal pressing portion 51c is provided with a third concave groove 53c near both ends of the pressing surface 51ce in the X direction XH, and the fourth metal pressing portion 51d is provided with an X of the pressing surface 51de. Fourth concave grooves 53d are recessed near both ends of the direction XH.

In these recessed grooves 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d), the laser beam LB emitted from the laser irradiation unit 20 toward the lower ZH2 passes through the recessed groove 53 to the lower ZH2 of the metal pressing portion 51. It is a form that prevents the resin holding portion 81 located from being directly irradiated (a form in which the resin holding portion 81 cannot be seen in the concave groove 53 when the concave groove 53 is viewed from the upper ZH1).
Specifically, the concave grooves 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d) are located in the upper concave portion (one side concave portion) 53f (53af, 53bf, 53cf, 53df) located in the upper ZH1 and the lower ZH2, respectively. It is composed of two lower recesses (the other recess) of 53 g (53ag, 53bg, 53cg, 53dg) and has an inverted Y shape.

That is, the upper concave portion 53f (53af, 53bf, 53cf, 53df) opens in the upper surface 51f (51af, 51bf, 51cf, 51df) of the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) and is in the Z direction ZH. Extend. On the other hand, the two lower recesses 53g (53ag, 53bg, 53ccg, 53dg) branch from the upper recesses 53f (53af, 53bf, 53cf, 53df) and extend diagonally opposite to each other in the Z direction ZH. Then, the two lower recesses 53g (53ag, 53bg, 53cg, 53dg) are opened in the lower surface 51g (51ag, 51bg, 51cg, 51dg) of the metal pressing portions 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), respectively.

Next, the battery holding unit 70 will be described. The battery holding portion 70 is arranged in a metal main body portion 71 having a housing portion 71i into which the pre-welding battery 100x is inserted and a housing portion 71i of the main body portion 71, and is a case main body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x. With the resin holding portion 81 (one first resin holding portion 81a, one second resin holding portion 81b, two third resin holding portions 81c, and two fourth resin holding portions 81d). Has.
Of these, the main body 71 includes a first side wall portion 71a located on one side XH1 of the X direction XH, a second side wall portion 71b located on the other side XH2 of the X direction XH and facing the first side wall portion 71a. It has a third side wall portion 71c located on one side YH1 of the Y direction YH and a fourth side wall portion 71d located on the other side YH2 of the Y direction YH. The above-mentioned accommodating portion 71i is surrounded by these side wall portions 71a to 71d.

The resin holding portions 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) each have a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in the Z direction ZH. Further, the resin holding portion 81 is elastically attached to the main body portion 71 by bolts 73 and springs 74, respectively, and the case side surfaces 113 (113a, 113b, 113c, 113d) of the case main body member 111 of the pre-welding battery 100x. ), And holds the case body member 111.

Specifically, the first resin holding portion 81a is attached to the first side wall portion 71a of the main body portion 71 at the lower ZH2 of the first metal pressing portion 51a and the first concave groove 53a described above, and is made of the first resin. The two springs 74 arranged between the holding portion 81a and the first side wall portion 71a make it elastically movable in the X direction XH. Further, the second resin holding portion 81b is attached to the second side wall portion 71b of the main body portion 71 at the lower ZH2 of the second metal pressing portion 51b and the second concave groove 53b described above, and the second resin holding portion 81b is attached. The two springs 74 arranged between the second side wall portion 71b and the second side wall portion 71b make it elastically movable in the X direction XH.

Further, the two third resin holding portions 81c are attached to the third side wall portion 71c of the main body portion 71 at the lower ZH2 of the above-mentioned third metal pressing portion 51c and the two third concave grooves 53c, respectively. The two springs 74 arranged between the three-resin holding portion 81c and the third side wall portion 71c make it elastically movable in the Y direction YH. Further, the two fourth resin holding portions 81d are attached to the fourth side wall portion 71d of the main body portion 71 at the lower ZH2 of the above-mentioned fourth metal pressing portion 51d and the two fourth concave grooves 53d, respectively. The two springs 74 arranged between the resin holding portion 81d and the fourth side wall portion 71d make it elastically movable in the Y direction YH.

When the pre-welding battery 100x is inserted into the accommodating portion 71i of the main body portion 71, the first resin holding portion 81a abuts on the first case side surface 113a of the case main body member 111, and the first case side surface 113a is XH in the X direction. Weld on the other side of XH2. Further, the second resin holding portion 81b abuts on the second case side surface 113b of the case body member 111 and urges the second case side surface 113b to one side XH1 of the X direction XH. As a result, the case body member 111 is sandwiched and held in the X direction XH.

Further, the two third resin holding portions 81c each come into contact with the third case side surface 113c of the case body member 111, and urge the third case side surface 113c to the other side YH2 in the Y direction YH. Further, the two fourth resin holding portions 81d abut on the fourth case side surface 113d of the case body member 111, respectively, and urge the fourth case side surface 113d to one side YH1 of the Y direction YH. As a result, the case body member 111 is sandwiched and held in the Y direction YH.
When the pre-welding battery 100x is inserted into the accommodating portion 71i of the main body 71 in this way, the case main body member 111 and the pre-welding battery 100x are held by the resin holding portions 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d).

Next, a method of forming the battery case 110 using the above-mentioned laser welding device 1 will be described. First, the case lid member 115 is arranged in the opening 111h of the case body member 111. Specifically, the positive electrode terminal member 120 and the negative electrode terminal member 130 are fixed to the case lid member 115 in advance, and the positive electrode terminal member 120 and the negative electrode terminal member 130 are welded to the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate of the electrode body (not shown). Keep it. Then, the electrode body is inserted into the case body member 111 prepared separately, the case lid member 115 is arranged in the opening 111h of the case body member 111, and the opening 111h is closed with the case lid member 115 before welding. The battery 100x is formed. At that time, the opening 111h of the case body member 111 is directed downward ZH2 (upside down from the pre-welding battery 100x in FIG. 1) so that foreign matter such as metal foreign matter does not enter the case body member 111, and the lower ZH2 The electrode body is inserted from the bottom, and the case lid member 115 is arranged from the lower ZH2.

Next, the pre-welding battery 100x is held by the welding jig 40. First, the pre-welding battery 100x is held by the battery holding portion 70 of the welding jig 40. Specifically, when the pre-welding battery 100x is inserted into the accommodating portion 71i of the main body 71 of the battery holding portion 70, the first resin holding portion 81a of the battery holding portion 70 becomes the side surface of the first case of the case main body member 111. In contact with 113a, the side surface 113a of the first case is urged to the other side XH2 in the X direction XH. Further, the second resin holding portion 81b abuts on the second case side surface 113b of the case body member 111 and urges the second case side surface 113b to one side XH1 of the X direction XH.

Further, the third resin holding portion 81c abuts on the third case side surface 113c of the case body member 111, and urges the third case side surface 113c to the other side YH2 in the Y direction YH. Further, the fourth resin holding portion 81d abuts on the fourth case side surface 113d of the case body member 111, and urges the fourth case side surface 113d to one side YH1 of the Y direction YH. As a result, the case body member 111 and the pre-welding battery 100x are sandwiched and held between the X direction XH and the Y direction YH. Since the resin holding portion 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) is made of resin, it is possible to prevent the case body member 111 from being damaged or metal foreign matter from being generated during holding.

Next, the pre-welding battery 100x is pressed by the battery pressing portion 50 of the welding jig 40. Specifically, the first metal pressing portion 51a is moved to the case lid member 115 side (the other side XH2 in the X direction XH), and the pressing surface 51ae of the first metal pressing portion 51a is the first of the case body member 111. 1 The case side surface 113a is pressed against the other side XH2 in the X direction XH. Further, the second metal pressing portion 51b is moved to the case lid member 115 side (one side XH1 of the X direction XH), and the pressing surface 51be of the second metal pressing portion 51b is the side surface of the second case of the case body member 111. The 113b is pressed against one side XH1 of the X direction XH. Further, the third metal pressing portion 51c is moved to the case lid member 115 side (the other side YH2 in the Y direction YH), and the pressing surface 51ce of the third metal pressing portion 51c is the side surface of the third case of the case body member 111. The 113c is pressed against YH2 on the other side of YH in the Y direction. Further, the fourth metal pressing portion 51d is moved to the case lid member 115 side (one side YH1 of the Y direction YH), and the pressing surface 51de of the fourth metal pressing portion 51d is the side surface of the fourth case of the case body member 111. The 113d is pressed against YH1 on one side of YH in the Y direction. As a result, the size of the case gap KG between the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115 is adjusted to an appropriate size over the entire circumference.

Next, the pre-welding battery 100x and the welding jig 40 holding the battery 100x are turned upside down by an inversion mechanism (not shown), and as shown in FIG. 1, the case lid member 115 is on the upper ZH1 and the case body member 111 is The posture is located at the lower ZH2.
Next, the imaging unit 30 images the vicinity of each concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d) from the upper ZH1. The information of each captured image is output from the imaging unit 30 to the control unit 35. Next, the control unit 35 identifies each concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d) and the opening 111h of the case body member 111 adjacent thereto, and further identifies the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the case lid. The position and size of the case gap KG with the peripheral edge portion 115s of the member 115 are specified. Then, based on this information, the irradiation conditions of the laser beam LB are determined.

Next, the control unit 35 controls the laser oscillator 10 and the laser irradiation unit 20 based on the irradiation conditions of the laser light LB to irradiate the pre-welding battery 100x with the laser light LB. As a result, the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115 are laser welded over the entire circumference to form a rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped battery case 110.

Here, as a comparative form (see FIGS. 11 and 12), the pressing surface 51e of the metal pressing portion 51 extends straight through the upper surface 51f and the lower surface 51g of the metal pressing portion 51 in the Z direction ZH. A case where the concave groove 953 is provided will be described. In this comparative mode, when the laser light LB is misaligned and the laser light LB is irradiated into the concave groove 953, the concave groove 953 extends straight in the Z direction ZH, so that the laser light LB is Through the concave groove 953, it directly hits the resin holding portion 81 located in the lower ZH2 of the metal pressing portion 51. Therefore, the resin holding portion 81 is damaged by the laser beam LB.

On the other hand, in the first embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 8), even when the laser light LB is irradiated into the concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d), the laser light LB is the concave groove 53. The resin holding portion 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) located in the lower ZH2 of the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) is not directly irradiated through. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the resin holding portion 81 from being damaged by the laser beam LB.

Since the concave groove 53 of the present embodiment penetrates to the lower surface 51 g of the metal pressing portion 51, even if the spatter generated during laser welding penetrates into the concave groove 53, this spatter is made of metal. It falls to the lower ZH2 of the pressing portion 51. Therefore, it is possible to prevent spatter from accumulating in the concave groove 53. Further, as described above, since the concave groove 53 has an inverted Y shape composed of the upper concave portion 53f and the two lower concave portions 53g, the spatter that has passed through the concave groove 53 is generated on the resin holding portion 81. Accumulation can be suppressed.

Next, after the laser welding is completed, the battery 100 is taken out from the welding jig 40. First, the metal pressing portions 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) of the battery pressing portion 50 are separated from the case side surfaces 113 (113a, 113b, 113c, 113d), respectively. Further, the battery 100 is gripped by an arm of an extraction device (not shown), and the battery 100 is pulled out from the main body 71 of the battery holding portion 70. After that, the battery 100 is sent to the next process.

As described above, in the laser welding apparatus 1, since the case main body member 111 is held by the resin holding portion 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) made of resin, the case main body member 111 is damaged during holding. It is possible to prevent the generation of metal foreign matter.
Further, since the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) is provided with the concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d), the laser light LB can be used for welding by using the concave groove 53. Can be irradiated to the welding target portion (the opening 111h of the case body member 111 and the peripheral edge 115s of the case lid member 115) with high position accuracy.
Further, the form of the concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d) prevents the laser beam LB from being directly irradiated to the resin holding portion 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) through the concave groove 53. It is in the form of Therefore, it is possible to prevent the laser beam LB from directly hitting the resin holding portion 81 and damaging the resin holding portion 81.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, the second embodiment will be described. In the laser welding apparatus 2 of the second embodiment, the concave groove 253 (first concave groove 253a, second concave groove 253b, third concave groove 253c and fourth) of the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d) The form of the concave groove 253d) (see FIGS. 9 and 10) is different from the form of the concave groove 53 (53a, 53b, 53c, 53d) according to the first embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 8).

Specifically, the concave grooves 253 (253a, 253b, 253c, 253d) according to the second embodiment are the upper concave portion (one side concave portion) 253f (253af, 253bf, 253cf, 253df) located in the upper ZH1, respectively. It is composed of 253 g (253 ag, 253 bb, 253 cg, 253 dg) of the lower concave portion (the other side concave portion) located in the lower ZH2.
The upper recesses 253f (253af, 253bf, 253cf, 253df) are the upper surfaces 51f (51af, 51bf, 51cf) of the metal pressing portions 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), respectively, like the upper recess 53f of the first embodiment. It opens in 51 df) and extends in the Z direction ZH.

On the other hand, the lower concave portion 253 g (253 ag, 253 bb, 253 cg, 253 dg) is inclined toward the pressing surface 51e (51ae, 51be, 51ce, 51de) of the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d), respectively. It has an inclined bottom surface of 253 gt (253 agt, 253 bgt, 253 cgt, 253 dgt) and does not penetrate the lower surface 51 g (51 ag, 51 bg, 51 cg, 51 dg) of the metal pressing portion 51. The inclined bottom surface 253 gt may be inclined downward ZH2 by 45 ° or more with respect to the X direction XH and the Y direction YH (inclination angle α ≧ 45 °). This is to prevent the light from the light 31 of the image pickup unit 30 from being reflected by the inclined bottom surface of 253 gt and reaching the CCD camera 33.

In the concave groove 253 (253a, 253b, 253c, 253d) of the second embodiment, the laser beam LB emitted from the laser irradiation unit 20 toward the lower ZH2 also forms the concave groove 253 (253a, 253b, 253c, 253d). A form (recessed groove) for preventing direct irradiation to the resin holding portion 81 (81a, 81b, 81c, 81d) located below ZH2 of the metal pressing portion 51 (51a, 51b, 51c, 51d). When the 253 is viewed from the upper ZH1, the resin holding portion 81 cannot be seen in the concave groove 253). Therefore, it is possible to prevent the laser beam LB from directly hitting the resin holding portion 81 and damaging the resin holding portion 81. Other parts similar to those in the first embodiment have the same effects as those in the first embodiment.

Although the present invention has been described above with reference to the first and second embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described first and second embodiments, and is appropriately modified and applied without departing from the gist thereof. It goes without saying that you can do it.

1, 2, Laser welding device 10 Laser oscillator 20 Laser irradiation unit 30 Imaging unit 35 Control unit 40 Welding jig 50 Battery pressing unit 51 Metal pressing unit 51a First metal pressing unit 51b Second metal pressing unit 51c Third Metal pressing portion 51d Fourth metal pressing portion 51e, 51ae, 51be, 51ce, 51de Pressing surfaces 51f, 51af, 51bf, 51cf, 51df Upper surface (one side surface)
51g, 51ag 51bg, 51cg, 51dg Bottom surface (other side surface)
53,253 Concave groove 53a, 253a 1st concave groove 53b, 253b 2nd concave groove 53c, 253c 3rd concave groove 53d, 253d 4th concave groove 53f, 53af, 53bf, 53cf, 53df, 253f, 253af, 253bf, 253cf , 253df Upper recess (one side recess)
53g, 53ag, 53bg, 53cg, 53dg, 253g, 253ag, 253bg, 253cg, 253dg Lower recess (other recess)
253gt, 253agt, 253bgt, 253cgt, 253dgt Inclined bottom surface 70 Battery holding part 81 Resin holding part 81a First resin holding part 81b Second resin holding part 81c Third resin holding part 81d Fourth resin holding part 100 Battery 100x Pre-welding Battery 110 Battery Case (Case)
111 Case body member 111h Opening 113 Case side surface 113a First case side surface 113b Second case side surface 113c Third case side surface 113d Fourth case side surface 115 Case lid member 115s Peripheral part ZH Z direction (first direction)
ZH1 upper (one side)
ZH2 down (the other side)
LB laser light

Claims (1)

A bottomed square tubular case body member with a rectangular opening,
A rectangular plate-shaped case lid member arranged in the opening of the case body member and closing the opening,
Is a laser welding device that forms a rectangular parallelepiped box-shaped case by laser welding over the entire circumference.
It is arranged on one side in the first direction orthogonal to the case lid member, emits laser light toward the other side in the first direction, and is provided at the opening of the case body member and the peripheral edge of the case lid member. The laser irradiation part to irradiate and
A metal press made of metal that presses the side surface of the case surrounding the opening of the case body member toward the case lid member side to bring the opening of the case body member closer to the peripheral edge of the case lid member. Department and
A resin holding portion made of resin, arranged on the other side of the metal pressing portion in the first direction, abutting on the case side surface of the case main body member, and holding the case main body member. ,
The metal pressing part is
It has a concave groove that is recessed in the pressing surface of the case body member that abuts and presses against the side surface of the case and opens on one side surface that faces the one side in the first direction.
The above concave groove
The laser beam emitted from the laser irradiation unit toward the other side in the first direction passes through the concave groove and directly to the resin holding portion located on the other side of the metal pressing portion. A laser welding device that is shaped to prevent irradiation.

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