US-12626994-B2 - Constraining apparatus and constraining device

US12626994B2US 12626994 B2US12626994 B2US 12626994B2US-12626994-B2

Abstract

A constraining apparatus and a constraining device are described. The constraining apparatus includes a base, a positioning assembly, and a cushion assembly. The positioning assembly includes a plurality of positioning members arranged in sequence and located between two end plate assemblies. The cushion assembly is disposed on at least one of two sides of the positioning member that are opposite each other in the first direction. The constraining apparatus includes a first state and a second state, where in the first state, adjacent two of the positioning members abut against each other, such that an accommodating space for accommodating a battery cell is formed between the adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is configured to abut against the battery cell and the positioning members. In the second state, the plurality of positioning members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction.

Inventors

Jiayi ZHAO
Fangyu HUANG
Zhiguo Zhang
Sheng Tang
ZhiHui Wang

Assignees

CONTEMPORARY AMPEREX TECHNOLOGY (HONG KONG) LIMITED

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20230330
Priority Date: 20220919

Claims (15)

1 . A constraining apparatus for constraining a battery cell comprising: a base, comprising a support assembly, a guide assembly, and two end plate assemblies, wherein the two end plate assemblies are respectively connected to two ends of the support assembly that are opposite each other in a first direction, and the guide assembly extends in the first direction and is connected to the two end plate assemblies; a positioning assembly, comprising a plurality of positioning members arranged in sequence in the first direction and located between the two end plate assemblies, wherein the plurality of positioning members are movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction, and adjacent two of the positioning members are fitted to each other in the first direction; and a cushion assembly, disposed on at least one of two sides of the positioning member that are opposite each other in the first direction; wherein the constraining apparatus comprises a first state and a second state; in the first state, adjacent two of the positioning members abut against each other, such that an accommodating space for accommodating a battery cell is formed between the adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is configured to abut against the battery cell and the positioning members; and in the second state, the plurality of positioning members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction; and wherein each positioning member of the plurality of positioning members comprises: two positioning pieces, disposed opposite each other in a second direction, wherein the two positioning pieces are movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction; and a restricting piece, detachably connected between the two positioning pieces, wherein the cushion assembly is disposed on the restricting piece; wherein an accommodating space is formed between the restricting pieces of adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is configured to be disposed between the restricting pieces and the battery cells.
2 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the positioning assembly is provided in plurality, wherein the plurality of positioning assemblies are disposed successively in a second direction, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.
3 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the restricting piece comprises a body and two first convex portions connected to the body, the two first convex portions respectively protrude in a direction towards the positioning pieces with respect to the body, and the body is connected to the cushion assembly; and each positioning piece of the two positioning pieces comprises a main body and first concave portions, wherein the first concave portion is depressed in a direction away from the restricting piece with respect to the main body, and the first concave portions are fitted to the first convex portions.
4 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each positioning piece of the two positioning pieces comprises: a main body; a second convex portion, connected to the main body and protruding in the first direction with respect to the main body; and a second concave portion, connected to the main body, depressed in the first direction with respect to the main body, and disposed opposite the second convex portion in the first direction; and in the first direction, the second convex portion of one of the two adjacent positioning pieces is fitted to the second concave portion of the other one of the two adjacent positioning pieces.
5 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the restricting piece comprises a body and a third convex portion connected to the body, wherein the third convex portion protrudes in the first direction with respect to the body and encloses a first cavity, the accommodating space is formed between the first cavities of adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is disposed in the first cavity.
6 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein: a plurality of through holes are provided on the body; and a plurality of protrusions are provided on a side of the cushion assembly facing the body and embedded in the through holes.
7 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the guide assembly comprises a plurality of guide shafts extending in the first direction, and the plurality of guide shafts are spaced apart from each other in a direction perpendicular to the first direction; and the positioning member comprises a plurality of movable portions, and each of the movable portions is movably connected to its corresponding guide shaft.
8 . A constraining apparatus for constraining a battery cell comprising: a base, comprising a support assembly, a guide assembly, and two end plate assemblies, wherein the two end plate assemblies are respectively connected to two ends of the support assembly that are opposite each other in a first direction, and the guide assembly extends in the first direction and is connected to the two end plate assemblies; a positioning assembly, comprising a plurality of positioning members arranged in sequence in the first direction and located between the two end plate assemblies, wherein the plurality of positioning members are movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction, and adjacent two of the positioning members are fitted to each other in the first direction; and a cushion assembly, disposed on at least one of two sides of the positioning member that are opposite each other in the first direction; wherein the constraining apparatus comprises a first state and a second state; in the first state, adjacent two of the positioning members abut against each other, such that an accommodating space for accommodating a battery cell is formed between the adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is configured to abut against the battery cell and the positioning members; and in the second state, the plurality of positioning members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction, wherein the constraining apparatus further comprises: a holding assembly, disposed on a side of the end plate assembly close to the positioning member; and a jacking assembly, disposed on the end plate assembly and capable of moving in the first direction with respect to the end plate assembly; wherein in the first state, the jacking assembly is locked with the end plate assembly, and the holding assembly abuts against the jacking assembly and the positioning member; and in the second state, the jacking assembly is locked with the end plate assembly, and the jacking assembly is disengaged from the holding assembly.
9 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the holding assembly is movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction.
10 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein in the second state, the holding assembly is engaged with the end plate assembly.
11 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the end plate assembly comprises a plurality of mounting portions, the plurality of mounting portions are spaced apart from each other, and the jacking assembly is disposed on the mounting portion.
12 . The constraining apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the holding assembly comprises a plurality of matching portions disposed opposite the mounting portions in the first direction; wherein in the first state, the jacking assembly abuts against the matching portion; and in the second state, the jacking assembly is disengaged from the matching portion.
13 . A constraining device, comprising: the constraining apparatus according to claim 1 ; and a pressurizing apparatus, wherein the pressurizing apparatus is configured to exert an acting force on the positioning assembly in a first heading, such that the constraining apparatus is in the first state and adjacent two of the positioning members abut against each other, and the first heading is parallel to the first direction.
14 . The constraining device according to claim 13 , wherein the constraining device further comprises: a pressure relief apparatus, wherein the pressure relief apparatus is configured to exert an acting force on the positioning assembly in a second heading opposite the first heading, such that the constraining apparatus is in the second state and the positioning members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction.
15 . The constraining device according to claim 13 , wherein: the constraining apparatus further comprises a holding assembly and a jacking assembly; and the constraining device further comprises a screw tightening apparatus, wherein the screw tightening apparatus is configured to connect to the jacking assembly, so as to drive the jacking assembly to rotate and push the holding assembly to move in the first heading.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202222468050.5 entitled “Constraining Apparatus and Constraining Device” filed on Sep. 19, 2022. This application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD This application relates to the field of battery technologies, and in particular, to a constraining apparatus and a constraining device that are applied to battery cells. BACKGROUND Both formation and grading processes for battery cell production relate to charging and discharging of battery cells. In these two processes, excess gas is easily generated inside battery cells. If the gas is not fully discharged, the defect rate of battery cells will increase. To alleviate this problem, battery cells need to be constrained to promote discharge of gas inside the battery cells. In related art, constraining trays are generally used to constrain battery cells. However, the constraining effect of existing constraining trays is unsatisfying, so the gas inside the battery cells cannot be fully discharged, thus failing to significantly alleviate the defect rate of battery cells. Therefore, it is urgent to develop a constraining apparatus, which provides good constraining effects for a lower defect rate of battery cells. SUMMARY This application provides a constraining apparatus and a constraining device, intended to improve the constraining effect of the constraining apparatus and decrease the defect rate of battery cells. According to a first aspect, this application provides a constraining apparatus, applied to constrain a battery cell. The constraining apparatus includes a base, a positioning assembly, and a cushion assembly. The base includes a support assembly, a guide assembly, and two end plate assemblies, where the two end plate assemblies are respectively connected to two ends of the support assembly that are opposite each other in a first direction. The guide assembly extends in the first direction and is connected to the two end plate assemblies. The positioning assembly includes a plurality of positioning members arranged in sequence in the first direction and located between two end plate assemblies, where the plurality of positioning members are movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction, and adjacent two of the positioning members are fitted to each other in the first direction. The cushion assembly is disposed on at least one of two sides of the positioning member that are opposite each other in the first direction. The constraining apparatus includes a first state and a second state, where in the first state, adjacent two of the positioning members abut against each other, such that an accommodating space for accommodating a battery cell is formed between the adjacent two of the positioning members, and the cushion assembly is configured to abut against the battery cell and the positioning members; and in the second state, the plurality of positioning members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction. The constraining apparatus includes the first state and the second state. The first state is a state of exerting constraint on the battery cell, and the second state is a state of releasing constraint on the battery cell. The constraining apparatus can freely switch between the first state and the second state by moving the positioning member. Under the condition that the constraining apparatus is in the first state, the cushion assembly abuts against the battery cell and the positioning members, and the cushion assembly has an elastic force, which can be converted into a constraining force on the battery cell. In this case, the battery cell is always subject to the constraining force applied by the cushion assembly in a gas discharging process, and the gas inside the battery cell can be fully discharged. This greatly improves the constraining effect of the constraining apparatus and decreases a defect rate of battery cells. Under the condition that the constraining apparatus is in the second state, gaps are present between the plurality of positioning members, facilitating loading and unloading of the battery cells. In some implementations, the positioning assembly is provided in plurality, where the plurality of positioning assemblies are disposed successively in a second direction, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction. Such arrangement of the plurality of positioning assemblies can increase a quantity of the battery cells constrained by the constraining apparatus in one constraint, improving the constraining efficiency of the constraining apparatus. In some implementations, the positioning member includes two positioning pieces and a restricting piece. The two positioning pieces are disposed opposite each other in the second direction, and are movably connected to the guide assembly in the first direction. The second direction is perpendicular to the first d