JP7344450B2 - Battery manufacturing equipment and electrode stack manufacturing space formation method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to battery manufacturing equipment and a method for forming an electrode stack manufacturing space.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an invention related to a sulfide-based solid electrolyte battery that can suppress the generation of hydrogen sulfide. In the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, a sulfide-based solid electrolyte layer is interposed between a positive electrode and a negative electrode. Patent Document 1 discloses that a sulfide-based solid electrolyte reacts with moisture in the atmosphere, deliquesces, and generates hydrogen sulfide, and that a sulfide-based solid electrolyte reacts with moisture in the atmosphere and deliquesces to generate hydrogen sulfide, and that the outer peripheral surface of a power generation element including a sulfide solid electrolyte layer and electrodes is repelled. It is disclosed that a water coat is provided. Furthermore, the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 discloses that the sulfide-based solid electrolyte layer is produced in a glove box filled with argon.

For example, Patent Document 2 discloses a method for testing short circuits in all-solid-state batteries. The inspection method disclosed in Patent Document 2 includes the following steps (i) to (v).
(i) Step of determining voltage drop amount ΔV1 due to self-discharge of the battery after charging the battery (ii) Step of determining whether voltage drop amount ΔV1 exceeds a predetermined first reference value (iii) Voltage drop When the amount ΔV1 exceeds a predetermined first reference value, the step (iv) of charging the battery under a pressure exceeding the confining pressure during use of the battery and causing self-discharge to determine the voltage drop amount ΔV2 due to self-discharge. (v) Determining whether the voltage drop amount ΔV2 exceeds a predetermined second reference value (v) If the voltage drop amount ΔV2 exceeds a predetermined second reference value, determining the battery as a defective product

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-9255 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-122169

In the manufacturing process of manufacturing a sulfide-based solid electrolyte battery, an electrode body having a solid electrolyte layer containing solid electrolyte particles made of sulfide is prepared. The electrode body includes a solid electrolyte layer, a positive electrode active material layer overlaid on the solid electrolyte layer, and a negative electrode active material layer overlaid on the solid electrolyte layer at a position different from the position of the positive electrode active material layer. There is. The positive electrode active material layer is attached to the positive electrode current collector. The negative electrode active material layer is attached to the negative electrode current collector. Further, an electrode body having a solid electrolyte layer containing solid electrolyte particles made of sulfide can be produced in a closed space so as not to be affected by moisture in the atmosphere. Such an electrode body is manufactured, for example, in a manufacturing space formed in an argon gas atmosphere with a dew point of −70° C. or lower.

By the way, the present inventor is considering performing a short-circuit test on the manufactured electrode body in the manufacturing process of such a sulfide-based solid electrolyte battery. By performing such a short-circuit inspection, short-circuited electrode bodies are eliminated and the occurrence of defective products is suppressed. This reduces the number of short-circuited electrode bodies sent to subsequent processes, reduces waste in subsequent processes, and improves yield. In this short-circuit test, it is preferable to manufacture and manage the electrode bodies so as to reduce false detections of non-short-circuited electrode bodies as being short-circuited.

The battery manufacturing equipment proposed here includes a manufacturing chamber, an oxygen concentration sensor, an exhaust port, an exhaust means, and a control device. The manufacturing chamber has a manufacturing space in which an electrode stack is manufactured by laminating a solid electrolyte layer, a positive electrode active material layer, and a negative electrode active material layer. The oxygen concentration sensor measures the oxygen concentration in the manufacturing space. The exhaust port is formed in the manufacturing chamber, and at least oxygen in the manufacturing space is exhausted. The exhaust means exhausts at least oxygen from the production space through the exhaust port. The control device performs a measurement process to measure the oxygen concentration in the fabrication space, a determination process to determine whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement process is equal to or higher than a preset threshold value, and a determination process to determine whether the oxygen concentration is equal to or higher than the threshold value in the determination process. When it is determined that this is the case, the device is configured to be able to execute a discharge process of discharging oxygen from the production space. The threshold is the oxygen concentration at which the voltage drop across the electrode stack is kept to a predetermined tolerance.

The present inventor discovered that when producing an electrode stack and before conducting a short-circuit test of the produced electrode stack, the electrode stack is placed in a place with a high oxygen concentration, and the electrode stack is It has been found that a voltage drop across the stack may occur. They have also discovered that a voltage drop across the electrode stack due to the oxygen concentration causes an erroneous detection of a short-circuit in an electrode stack that is not short-circuited. In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the oxygen concentration is adjusted in the manufacturing space of the manufacturing chamber so that the oxygen concentration is less than a threshold value. Therefore, voltage drop in the electrode stack due to oxygen concentration can be made less likely to occur. Therefore, during a short circuit test, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the above-mentioned erroneous detection due to oxygen concentration.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, a circulation outlet and a circulation inlet may be formed in the fabrication chamber. The battery manufacturing equipment includes a circulation discharge path connected to the circulation discharge port, a circulation supply path connected to the circulation supply port, and an oxygen removal device connected to the circulation discharge path and the circulation supply path. It's okay.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the control device takes oxygen-containing gas from the manufacturing space into the oxygen removal device through the circulation exhaust path, and supplies and circulates the removed gas, which is obtained by removing oxygen from the taken gas. The device may be configured to be able to perform an oxygen removal process that controls the removal of oxygen that is sent into the manufacturing space through a channel. The control device may perform the measurement process after the oxygen removal process.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the discharge port and the circulation discharge port may be the same. The evacuation means and the oxygen removal device may be the same. In the discharge process, the oxygen removal control may be performed by the oxygen removal device.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, an inlet may be formed in the manufacturing chamber. The battery manufacturing equipment may include an inert gas generator connected to the supply port and feeding inert gas into the manufacturing space. The control device may be configured to be able to execute a supply process of supplying inert gas into the production space after the discharge process.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the inert gas supplied in the supply process may be nitrogen.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, an inlet may be formed in the manufacturing chamber. The battery manufacturing equipment may include an inert gas generator connected to the supply port and feeding inert gas into the manufacturing space. The control device may be configured to be able to execute a removal determination process for determining whether or not the oxygen removal device can perform oxygen removal control when the oxygen concentration is determined to be equal to or higher than a threshold value by the determination process. good. In the discharge process, when it is determined in the removal determination process that it is possible to cause the oxygen removal apparatus to perform oxygen removal control, the oxygen removal apparatus may be caused to perform oxygen removal control. In the discharge process, when it is determined in the removal determination process that it is impossible to cause the oxygen removal apparatus to perform oxygen removal control, oxygen in the production space may be discharged from the discharge port. The control device can execute a supply process of supplying inert gas into the production space after the discharge process when it is determined by the removal determination process that it is impossible to cause the oxygen removal device to perform oxygen removal control. may be configured.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, in the removal determination process, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement process is equal to or higher than the removal threshold, which is higher than the threshold, and when it is less than the removal threshold, the oxygen removal control is It may be determined that it is possible to have the removal device perform the removal.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the threshold value may be any oxygen concentration of 100 ppm or less.

In the battery manufacturing equipment proposed here, the manufacturing space may be filled with an inert gas.

The electrode stack manufacturing space formation method proposed here includes a measurement process, a determination process, and a discharge process. In the measurement step, the oxygen concentration in a production space in which an electrode stack is produced by laminating a solid electrolyte layer, a positive electrode active material layer, and a negative electrode active material layer is measured. In the determination step, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement step is greater than or equal to a preset threshold. In the discharging step, oxygen in the production space is discharged when it is determined in the determining step that the oxygen concentration is equal to or higher than the threshold value. The threshold is the oxygen concentration at which the voltage drop across the electrode stack is kept to a predetermined tolerance.

According to the electrode stack manufacturing space formation method proposed here, the oxygen concentration is adjusted in the manufacturing space so that the oxygen concentration is less than a threshold value. Therefore, voltage drop in the electrode stack due to oxygen concentration can be made less likely to occur. Therefore, during a short circuit test, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the above-mentioned erroneous detection due to oxygen concentration.

In the electrode stack manufacturing space formation method proposed here, in the exhaust step, gas containing oxygen from the manufacturing space may be taken in, and a removed gas obtained by removing oxygen from the taken gas may be sent into the manufacturing space.

The electrode stack manufacturing space forming method proposed here may further include a supplying step of supplying new inert gas into the manufacturing space after exhausting oxygen from the manufacturing space in the exhausting step.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an electrode stack. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a manufacturing process of an electrode stack. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing battery manufacturing equipment according to a first embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of battery manufacturing equipment according to the first embodiment. 7 is a flowchart showing a procedure for adjusting the oxygen concentration in a production space in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing battery manufacturing equipment according to second and third embodiments. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of battery manufacturing equipment according to a second embodiment. 7 is a flowchart showing a procedure for adjusting the oxygen concentration in the production space in the second embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of battery manufacturing equipment according to a third embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of adjusting the oxygen concentration of a manufacturing space in 3rd Embodiment.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the battery manufacturing equipment and the electrode stack manufacturing space forming method disclosed herein will be described. The embodiments described herein are, of course, not intended to particularly limit the invention. The invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein unless otherwise stated. In the following description, the same reference numerals are given to members and parts that have the same function, and overlapping descriptions are omitted or simplified as appropriate.

<First embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electrode stack 100. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the manufacturing process of the electrode stack 100. First, the electrode stack 100 manufactured by the battery manufacturing equipment disclosed herein will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electrode stack 100 includes a solid electrolyte layer 111, a positive electrode active material layer 121, a positive electrode current collector 122, a negative electrode active material layer 131, and a negative electrode current collector 132.

Solid electrolyte layer 111 is a layer containing solid electrolyte particles. In this embodiment, for example, a material used as a solid electrolyte material for a lithium secondary battery is applied to the solid electrolyte. For example, solid electrolytes include oxide-based amorphous solid electrolytes, Li ₂ S-SiS ₂ , LiI-Li ₂ S-SiS ₂ , LiI-Li ₂ S-P ₂ S ₅ , LiI-Li ₂ S-P ₂ O Examples include sulfide-based amorphous solid electrolytes such as ₅ , LiI-Li ₃ PO ₄ -P ₂ S ₅ and Li ₂ S-P ₂ S ₅ .

The positive electrode active material layer 121 is a layer overlaid on the solid electrolyte layer 111, and is a layer containing positive electrode active material particles. In this embodiment, the positive electrode active material layer 121 is, for example, a layer made of a mixture of positive electrode active material particles, solid electrolyte particles, a binder, and a conductive additive. The positive electrode active material layer 121 may contain a thickener.

The positive electrode active material particles are not particularly limited as long as they are a material used as a positive electrode active material for lithium ion secondary batteries. Examples of positive electrode active material particles include lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO ₂ ), lithium nickel oxide (LiNiO ₂ ), Li ₁ +xNi _1/3 Mn _1/3 Co _1/3 O ₂ , lithium manganate (LiMn ₂ O ₄ ) etc. The positive electrode active material particles may have a layered structure or a spinel structure. Further, the positive electrode active material particles may be coated.

The positive electrode current collector 122 is a current collector that is stacked on the positive electrode active material layer 121. For the positive electrode current collector 122, a material with required corrosion resistance is used. Examples of materials used for the positive electrode current collector 122 include SUS, Ni, Cr, Au, Pt, Al, Fe, Ti, and Zn. Positive electrode current collector 122 can be, for example, a metal foil of such a material. In this embodiment, a sheet in which a positive electrode active material layer 121 is coated on a positive electrode current collector 122 is referred to as a positive electrode sheet 120 (see FIG. 2).

The negative electrode active material layer 131 is a layer containing negative electrode active material particles. The negative electrode active material layer 131 is stacked on the solid electrolyte layer 111 at a position different from the position of the positive electrode active material layer 121. The negative electrode active material layer 131 is, for example, a layer made of a mixture of negative electrode active material particles, positive electrode active material particles, solid electrolyte particles, and a binder. The negative electrode active material layer 131 may contain a conductive additive or a thickener.

The negative electrode active material particles are not particularly limited as long as they are materials used as negative electrode active material materials for lithium ion secondary batteries. Examples of the negative electrode active material particles include carbon materials (C) such as graphite and hard carbon, Si and Si alloys, and Li ₄ Ti ₅ O ₁₂ .

The negative electrode current collector 132 is a current collector that is stacked on the negative electrode active material layer 131. A material with required corrosion resistance is used for the negative electrode current collector 132. Examples of materials used for the negative electrode current collector 132 include SUS, Cu, Ni, Fe, Co, and Zn. In this embodiment, a sheet in which the negative electrode current collector 132 is coated with the negative electrode active material layer 131 is referred to as a negative electrode sheet 130 (see FIG. 2).

As shown in FIG. 1, the electrode stack 100 includes a solid electrolyte layer 111 containing solid electrolyte particles made of sulfide, a positive electrode active material layer 121 stacked on the solid electrolyte layer 111, and a position of the positive electrode active material layer 121. includes a negative electrode active material layer 131 overlaid on the solid electrolyte layer 111 at a different position. In this embodiment, the positive electrode active material layer 121 and the negative electrode active material layer 131 are arranged to face each other with the solid electrolyte layer 111 in between. It is preferable that the positive electrode current collector 122 is further stacked on the positive electrode active material layer 121. Further, it is preferable that the negative electrode current collector 132 is further stacked on the negative electrode active material layer 131. The manner in which the positive electrode active material layer 121, the solid electrolyte layer 111, and the negative electrode active material layer 131 are stacked, the arrangement including the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132, etc. are not particularly limited.

In this embodiment, the electrode stack 100 is fabricated by stacking a solid electrolyte layer 111, a positive electrode active material layer 121, a positive electrode current collector 122, a negative electrode active material layer 131, and a negative electrode current collector 132. Ru. In manufacturing the electrode stack 100, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, an electrolyte sheet 110 in which a solid electrolyte layer 111 is coated on a transfer sheet 112, and a cathode in which a cathode active material layer 121 is coated on a cathode current collector 122 are used. A sheet 120 and a negative electrode sheet 130 in which a negative electrode active material layer 131 is coated on a negative electrode current collector 132 are respectively produced. The respective sheets on which the solid electrolyte layer 111, the positive electrode active material layer 121, and the negative electrode active material layer 131 are formed are cut into a predetermined shape so as to be stacked as the electrode stack 100.

In producing the electrode stack 100, as shown in FIG. 1, the solid electrolyte layer 111 is superimposed on the negative electrode active material layer 131, and the transfer sheet 112 is peeled off. Further, a positive electrode active material layer 121 is stacked on the solid electrolyte layer 111. As a result, one battery element in which the positive electrode active material layer 121 and the negative electrode active material layer 131 are stacked with the solid electrolyte layer 111 in between is manufactured. In this way, the electrode stack 100 is produced by stacking the negative electrode active material layer 131 and the positive electrode active material layer 121 with the solid electrolyte layer 111 in between.

In this embodiment, the step of stacking the positive electrode active material layer 121, the negative electrode active material layer 131, and the solid electrolyte layer 111 in the production of the electrode stack 100 is referred to as a lamination step.

A plurality of electrode stacks 100 are further prepared. Then, the plurality of electrode stacks 100 are further stacked such that the positive electrode active material layer 121 and the negative electrode active material layer 131 are stacked with the solid electrolyte layer 111 in between. In this way, an electrode body serving as a power storage element of a battery is produced. That is, by stacking the electrode stacks 100, a predetermined battery storage capacity is ensured.

By the way, the present inventor would like to improve the yield of solid electrolyte secondary batteries produced in this manner. For example, by inspecting each manufactured electrode stack 100 and removing defective products, the yield can be improved.

Therefore, in this embodiment, a short circuit test is performed on the electrode stack 100. The short circuit test is a test to check for a short circuit between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100 by measuring the potential difference between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100. It is about. For example, the positive electrode current collector 122 exhibits a potential caused by the positive electrode active material layer 121. The negative electrode current collector 132 shows a potential caused by the negative electrode active material layer 131.

If the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 are insulated, the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 approximately exhibit a predetermined potential difference. Therefore, in the short circuit test, if the potential difference between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 is smaller than a predetermined potential difference, a short circuit between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 is suspected. By removing electrode stacks 100 that cannot obtain a predetermined potential difference as defective products, it is possible to improve the yield of electrode bodies and batteries manufactured by laminating a plurality of electrode stacks 100. Moreover, since the short-circuited electrode stack 100 is included in the electrode body or the battery, there is a high possibility that the product as a whole will be defective, resulting in poor yield.

However, according to the findings of the present inventors, it has been found that in the short circuit inspection of the electrode stacks 100, the proportion of the electrode stacks 100 that are treated as defective products is higher than expected. In other words, there were cases in which the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100 did not exhibit the potential difference that they should have. Regarding this cause, the present inventor discovered that after the electrode stack 100 is produced through the above lamination process, the potential difference between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100 decreases over time. I discovered an event. In other words, we have discovered that the voltage of the electrode stack 100 is decreasing. As a result, an electrode stack 100 that is not short-circuited may be mistakenly detected as being short-circuited.

Regarding the voltage drop of the electrode stack 100, the present inventor has investigated the voltage drop in the space where the electrode stack 100 is placed during the lamination process and after the lamination process and before short circuit inspection. It has been found that the lower the oxygen concentration, the smaller the voltage drop can be suppressed. The cause of the voltage drop and the reason why the voltage drop is kept small have not been clearly elucidated. However, from the above phenomenon, it is inferred that a voltage drop occurs in relation to the oxygen concentration. It is considered that the electrode stacks 100 in which a voltage drop occurs in relation to the oxygen concentration include those that are not actually short-circuited.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the battery manufacturing equipment 10 according to this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the battery manufacturing equipment 10. Therefore, in this embodiment, the production of the electrode stack 100 in the above lamination process is performed in the battery production equipment 10 shown in FIG. 3. Further, the electrode stack 100 produced through the lamination process and before being inspected for short circuits is housed in the battery production equipment 10. Next, the battery manufacturing equipment 10 according to this embodiment will be explained.

The battery manufacturing equipment 10 is equipment that performs a lamination process. The battery manufacturing equipment 10 also includes an electrode stack 100 manufactured by laminating a positive electrode active material layer 121, a negative electrode active material layer 131, and a solid electrolyte layer 111 through a lamination process, and an electrode stack 100 that is manufactured by laminating a positive electrode active material layer 121, a negative electrode active material layer 131, and a solid electrolyte layer 111. This is a facility in which the stack 100 is accommodated. In this embodiment, the short circuit test may be performed on the electrode stack 100 housed in the battery manufacturing equipment 10. In the battery manufacturing equipment 10, the lamination process is performed while the oxygen concentration in the manufacturing space 12 is adjusted so that the oxygen concentration in the manufacturing chamber 11 having a manufacturing space 12, which will be described later, is below a predetermined threshold. .

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the battery manufacturing equipment 10 includes a manufacturing chamber 11, an oxygen concentration sensor 20, a circulation discharge path 30, a circulation supply path 35, an oxygen removal device 40, and a control device. 80 (see FIG. 4).

The manufacturing chamber 11 is a place where a lamination process is performed, and the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by laminating the solid electrolyte layer 111, the positive electrode active material layer 121, and the negative electrode active material layer 131. After the lamination process, the laminated electrode stack 100 is housed in the manufacturing chamber 11. Note that a short circuit test may be performed in the fabrication chamber 11.

In this embodiment, a space within the fabrication chamber 11 in which a stacking process is performed and the electrode stack 100 is fabricated by an operator is referred to as a fabrication space 12. The production space 12 is a space filled with inert gas. That is, the atmosphere in the production space 12 is an inert gas atmosphere. The oxygen concentration in the production space 12 is relatively low.

Here, the type of inert gas filled in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11 is not particularly limited. In this embodiment, the production space 12 is filled with nitrogen. However, the production space 12 may be filled with argon, for example.

Note that the specific type of manufacturing chamber 11 is not particularly limited. In this embodiment, the production chamber 11 is a so-called glove box. A manufacturing space 12 in the manufacturing chamber 11 is isolated from the outside air, and an operator can work in the manufacturing space 12. Although not shown in the drawings, in this embodiment, the manufacturing chamber 11, which is a glove box, is provided with a glove hole into which a glove to be worn by the worker's hand is attached. The operator wears the glove on his hand and can work on the electrode stack 100 using his hand in the fabrication chamber 11 through the glove hole.

As described above, the fabrication chamber 11 according to the present embodiment is a so-called glove box, and has a fabrication space 12 large enough to allow an operator to insert his/her hand into the fabrication space 12 for work. However, the size of the manufacturing space 12 is not particularly limited. For example, when the electrode stack 100 is automatically produced along a production line for producing all-solid-state batteries, the production space 12 of the production chamber 11 is large enough to accommodate a machine that automatically produces the electrode stack 100. It is large enough for workers to enter.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the manufacturing chamber 11 is formed with a circulation outlet 15 and a circulation inlet 16. The circulation outlet 15 is a part from which gas in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11 is exhausted. Here, part of the oxygen and moisture contained in the gas in the production space 12 is discharged from the circulation outlet 15. Further, in this embodiment, since the production space 12 is an inert gas atmosphere, nitrogen, which is an example of an inert gas, is also discharged from the circulation outlet 15 along with oxygen and moisture.

The circulation supply port 16 is a part where the removed gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed is supplied to the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11 . Here, the removed gas from the production space 12 discharged from the circulation outlet 15 and from which oxygen and moisture have been removed by the oxygen removal device 40 is sent into the production space 12 through the circulation supply port 16. In this embodiment, the removed gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed is an inert gas filled in the production space 12, and here is nitrogen. Therefore, nitrogen is sent into the manufacturing space 12 through the circulation inlet 16.

Note that the positional relationship between the circulation outlet 15 and the circulation inlet 16 is not particularly limited. In this embodiment, the circulation outlet 15 and the circulation inlet 16 are formed in the upper part of the manufacturing chamber 11. However, the circulation outlet 15 and the circulation inlet 16 may be formed in the center of the production chamber 11 or in the lower part of the production chamber 11. In particular, considering the relatively heavy nature of oxygen, the circulation outlet 15 is preferably formed at the lower part of the production chamber 11. Further, in this embodiment, the circulation outlet 15 and the circulation inlet 16 are formed at the same height relative to the manufacturing chamber 11. However, the circulation outlet 15 may be formed at a higher position than the circulation inlet 16 or may be formed at a lower position than the circulation inlet 16.

The oxygen concentration sensor 20 is a sensor that measures the oxygen concentration C1 (see FIG. 5) in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11. Note that the arrangement position of the oxygen concentration sensor 20 is not particularly limited. In this embodiment, the oxygen concentration sensor 20 is placed in the manufacturing space 12. Here, in consideration of the relatively heavy nature of oxygen, the oxygen concentration sensor 20 is preferably disposed in the lower space of the manufacturing space 12. However, the oxygen concentration sensor 20 may be placed in the upper space of the production space 12, or may be placed in the central space.

The circulation discharge path 30 is connected to the circulation discharge port 15 of the production chamber 11 and communicates with the circulation discharge port 15 . The circulation supply path 35 is connected to the circulation supply port 16 of the manufacturing chamber 11 and communicates with the circulation supply port 16 . Note that the materials forming the circulation discharge path 30 and the circulation supply path 35 are not particularly limited. The circulation discharge path 30 and the circulation supply path 35 are formed of, for example, a flexible material (such as rubber). The circulation discharge path 30 and the circulation supply path 35 are, for example, tubes and have a tubular shape.

The oxygen removal device 40 is a device that removes oxygen from the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11. In this embodiment, the oxygen removal device 40 can remove moisture together with oxygen. The oxygen removal device 40 takes in a gas (typically an inert gas) containing oxygen and moisture from the production space 12, and removes the oxygen and moisture from the gas (typically an inert gas). is sent into the production space 12. In this way, the oxygen removal device 40 is a device that sends inert gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed into the production space 12, and is a so-called inert gas purification device.

In the present embodiment, the control is performed by the oxygen removal device 40, which takes in gas containing oxygen and moisture from the production space 12 through the circulation discharge path 30, and removes oxygen and moisture from the taken gas. A series of controls for feeding oxygen into the manufacturing space 12 through the circulation supply path 35 is referred to as "oxygen removal control."

Here, the oxygen removal device 40 is connected to the circulation discharge path 30 and the circulation supply path 35. One end of the circulation discharge path 30 is connected to the circulation discharge port 15 , and the other end of the circulation discharge path 30 is connected to the oxygen removal device 40 . One end of the circulation supply passage 35 is connected to the oxygen removal device 40 , and the other end of the circulation supply passage 35 is connected to the circulation supply inlet 16 .

Note that the specific configuration of the oxygen removal device 40 is not particularly limited. The oxygen removal device 40 includes, for example, a circulation pump 41 and an adsorption filter 42. The circulation pump 41 is a pump that sucks gas containing oxygen and moisture from the production space 12 through the circulation discharge path 30. Further, the circulation pump 41 is a pump that sends the removed gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed in the oxygen removal device 40 into the production space 12 through the circulation supply path 35.

The adsorption filter 42 is a filter that adsorbs oxygen. In this embodiment, the adsorption filter 42 also adsorbs moisture contained in the gas. Here, the gas containing oxygen and moisture in the production space 12 is taken into the oxygen removal device 40 through the circulation discharge path 30. The gas taken into the oxygen removal device 40 passes through an adsorption filter 42. At this time, oxygen and moisture contained in the gas are adsorbed by the adsorption filter 42, and the gas becomes a removed gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed. The removed gas that has passed through the adsorption filter 42 is sent into the production space 12 through the circulation supply path 35.

A control device 80 shown in FIG. 4 performs control to adjust the oxygen concentration C1 (see FIG. 5) in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11. The control device 80 can be implemented, for example, by a computer that runs according to a predetermined program. Each function of the control device 80 is performed by an arithmetic unit (also referred to as a processor, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), or an MPU (Micro-processing unit)) and a storage device (memory, hard disk, etc.) of each computer that constitutes the control device 80. ) and processed in collaboration with software. For example, each configuration and process of the control device 80 may be implemented as a database that stores data in a predetermined format, a data structure, a processing module that performs predetermined arithmetic processing according to a predetermined program, or the like. , can be embodied as a part of them.

As shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the control device 80 is communicably connected to the oxygen concentration sensor 20 and the oxygen removal device 40 (specifically, the circulation pump 41). The control device 80 receives the measurement result of the oxygen concentration C1 (see FIG. 5) in the production space 12 from the oxygen concentration sensor 20. The control device 80 controls the driving of the circulation pump 41 of the oxygen removal device 40.

The control device 80 includes a storage section 81, an oxygen removal control section 83, a measurement section 85, a determination section 87, an emission control section 89, a first notification section 91, and a second notification section 92. . Each part of the control device 80 may be configured by software or hardware. Each part of the control device 80 may be realized by one or more processors, or may be incorporated into a circuit. Note that a detailed explanation of each part of the control device 80 will be given later.

Next, a procedure for adjusting the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 of the fabrication chamber 11 in the battery fabrication equipment 10 according to the present embodiment will be described along the flowchart of FIG. Here, the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by performing a lamination process within the battery manufacturing equipment 10. The manufactured electrode stack 100 is then stored in the manufacturing chamber 11 until the short circuit test starts.

In step S101 of FIG. 5, oxygen removal processing is performed. In this embodiment, the oxygen removal process is executed by the oxygen removal control section 83 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. The oxygen removal control unit 83 causes the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control by driving the circulation pump 41 of the oxygen removal device 40. For example, the oxygen removal control unit 83 transmits a removal signal to the oxygen removal device 40. Then, the oxygen removal device 40 that has received the removal signal drives the circulation pump 41 to perform oxygen removal control.

In the oxygen removal control, the circulation pump 41 is driven to take gas containing oxygen and moisture from the production space 12 into the oxygen removal device 40 through the circulation discharge path 30. Then, in the oxygen removal device 40, the gas is passed through the adsorption filter 42, thereby becoming a removed gas from which oxygen and moisture have been removed. The removed gas is fed into the production space 12 through the circulation supply path 35. By this, oxygen and moisture in the manufacturing space 12 can be removed, and the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 can be lowered.

Note that in step S101, the time for performing oxygen removal control, that is, the time for driving the circulation pump 41, is a predetermined time. The predetermined time is stored in the storage section 81. The predetermined time is appropriately set depending on the size of the production space 12 and the actual oxygen concentration in the production space 12.

After performing the oxygen removal process in this way, a measurement process is performed in step S103. In the measurement process, the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12 is measured. In this embodiment, the measurement process is executed by the measurement unit 85 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. The measuring unit 85 measures the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 by acquiring the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 from the oxygen concentration sensor 20. Here, the measurement unit 85 transmits a measurement signal to the oxygen concentration sensor 20, for example. The oxygen concentration sensor 20 that has received the measurement signal measures the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12 and transmits the measured oxygen concentration C1 to the measurement unit 85. Thereby, the measurement unit 85 can acquire the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12. Note that the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 measured by the measurement unit 85 is stored in the storage unit 81.

Next, in step S105, a determination process is performed. In this embodiment, the determination process is executed by the determination unit 87 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. The determining unit 87 determines whether the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 measured by the measuring unit 85 in step S103 is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold Th1.

Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the threshold Th1 is a value stored in the storage unit 81 in advance. The threshold value Th1 is set to an oxygen concentration at which the voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 is suppressed to a predetermined allowable value. This allowable value is preferably 0, but is a value that is allowable for exhibiting the function as an all-solid-state battery. Here, when performing a short circuit test on the electrode stack 100, a voltage drop occurs due to the oxygen concentration, and the threshold value Th1 is set to a value that does not erroneously detect that the electrode stack 100 that is not short-circuited is short-circuited. should be set.

Note that the specific value of this threshold Th1 is not particularly limited. For example, the threshold Th1 is preferably 200 ppm or less, preferably 100 ppm or less, particularly preferably 50 ppm or less. For example, when adjusting the inert gas atmosphere in a glove box, which is an example of the manufacturing chamber 11, the oxygen concentration inside the glove box is usually adjusted to about 1000 ppm. In this embodiment, the threshold Th1 is set to be lower than the oxygen concentration in a normal glove box. This can suppress the voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration.

In step S105 of FIG. 5, when it is determined that the oxygen concentration C1 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1, the determination result is set as YES and the process proceeds to step S107. In step S107, inspection failure notification processing is performed. This inspection failure notification process is executed by the first notification unit 91 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. The first notification unit 91, for example, notifies the worker that the short circuit test cannot be performed. The first notification unit 91 displays, for example, a message on the display indicating that the short circuit test cannot be performed. However, the method of notification to the effect that the short circuit test cannot be performed is not particularly limited. The first notification unit 91 may, for example, turn on a first light source (not shown) that lights up a first color, or emit a first sound using a buzzer (not shown) to perform a short circuit test. You may notify that it is not possible to implement the project.

Next, in step S109, a discharge process is performed. In the exhaust process, oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 is exhausted. In this embodiment, the discharge process is executed by the discharge control section 89 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. Here, the discharge control unit 89 causes the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control by driving the circulation pump 41 of the oxygen removal device 40, as in step S101. For example, the exhaust control unit 89 transmits a removal signal to the oxygen removal device 40. Then, the oxygen removal device 40 that has received the removal signal drives the circulation pump 41 to perform oxygen removal control. After such discharge processing is performed, the measurement processing of step S103 is performed again.

In step S105 of FIG. 5, when it is determined that the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12 is not equal to or higher than the threshold Th1, that is, when it is determined that the oxygen concentration C1 is less than the threshold Th1, the determination result is set as NO and the next step is Proceed to S111. In step S111, inspection possibility notification processing is performed. This inspection possibility notification process is executed by the second notification unit 92 (see FIG. 4) of the control device 80. The second notification unit 92, for example, notifies the operator that a short circuit test can be performed. The second notification unit 92 displays, for example, a message on the display indicating that a short circuit test can be performed. However, the method of notification to the effect that short-circuit inspection can be performed is not particularly limited. The second notification unit 92 may, for example, turn on a second light source (not shown) that lights up a second color different from the first color, or use a buzzer (not shown) to emit the first sound. A notification that a short circuit test will be performed may be notified by sounding a second sound different from the above.

Next, in step S113, the operator performs a short circuit test. The operator performs a short circuit test on the electrode stack 100 in the production space 12 . Here, as shown in FIG. 1, the operator measures the potential difference between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100 by measuring the potential difference between the positive electrode current collector 122 and the negative electrode current collector 132 of the electrode stack 100. Check for short circuit with electric body 132. In this embodiment, the electrode stack 100 is inspected for short circuits in a state where the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 is less than the threshold Th1. Therefore, when performing a short-circuit test on the electrode stack 100, a voltage drop is less likely to occur due to the oxygen concentration C1, and it is possible to suppress erroneously detecting that an electrode stack 100 that is not short-circuited is short-circuited. I can do it.

As described above, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the battery manufacturing equipment 10 includes the manufacturing chamber 11, the oxygen concentration sensor 20, the circulation outlet 15, the oxygen removal device 40, and the control device 80. We are prepared. The manufacturing chamber 11 has a manufacturing space 12 in which the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by laminating a solid electrolyte layer 111, a positive electrode active material layer 121, and a negative electrode active material layer 131 (see FIG. 1). The oxygen concentration sensor 20 measures the oxygen concentration C1 (see FIG. 5) in the production space 12. The circulation outlet 15 is formed in the manufacturing chamber 11, and at least oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 is exhausted. The oxygen removal device 40 discharges at least oxygen from the production space 12 through the circulation discharge port 15 . As shown in FIG. 5, the control device 80 performs a measurement process (step S103) to measure the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12, and determines whether the oxygen concentration C1 measured in the measurement process is equal to or higher than a preset threshold Th1. When the oxygen concentration C1 is determined to be equal to or higher than the threshold Th1 in the determination process, a discharge process (step S109) for discharging oxygen from the production space 12 can be executed. It is configured. The threshold value Th1 is an oxygen concentration at which the voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 is suppressed to a predetermined allowable value.

In this embodiment, before short-circuit inspection of the electrode stack 100, the electrode stack 100 is manufactured and stored in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11. When the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 becomes equal to or higher than the threshold Th1, the oxygen in the fabrication space 12 is exhausted, so the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 is adjusted to be less than the threshold Th1. In this way, since the electrode stack 100 is placed in the manufacturing space 12 where the oxygen concentration C1 is adjusted to be less than the threshold Th1, a voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1 can be made less likely to occur. Therefore, during a short circuit test, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of erroneous detection in the short circuit test due to the oxygen concentration C1.

In this embodiment, the threshold Th1 is any oxygen concentration below 200 ppm, preferably below 100 ppm, particularly preferably below 50 ppm. For example, when adjusting an inert gas atmosphere in a glove box such as the manufacturing chamber 11, the oxygen concentration inside the glove box is usually adjusted to about 1000 ppm. However, in this embodiment, the threshold Th1 is set to, for example, 100 ppm or less so as to make the oxygen concentration lower than the oxygen concentration in a normal glove box. With this, it is possible to further suppress the voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1.

In this embodiment, the production space 12 is filled with an inert gas. As a result, the measurement process of step S103 in FIG. 5 is performed on the manufacturing space 12 filled with inert gas. Therefore, in the determination process, it can be made difficult to determine that the oxygen concentration C1 in the production space 12 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1, and it is possible to make it difficult to cause a voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the circulation discharge path 30 is connected to the circulation discharge port 15 formed in the manufacturing chamber 11. The circulation supply path 35 is connected to the circulation supply port 16 formed in the manufacturing chamber 11 . The oxygen removal device 40 is connected to the circulation discharge path 30 and the circulation supply path 35. As a result, the removed gas from which oxygen has been removed by the oxygen removal device 40 is returned to the production space 12 through the circulation supply path 35. In this way, by circulating the gas in the production space 12 by passing through the oxygen removal device 40, the gas from which oxygen has been removed can be sent into the production space 12.

In this embodiment, the control device 80 takes the oxygen-containing gas from the production space 12 into the oxygen removal device 40 through the circulation exhaust path 30, and transfers the removed gas obtained by removing oxygen from the taken gas through the circulation supply path. The oxygen removal process (step S101 in FIG. 5) that controls the removal of oxygen sent into the manufacturing space 12 through the oxygen removal process 35 is configured to be possible. The control device 80 executes the measurement process (step S103 in FIG. 5) after the oxygen removal process. As a result, the oxygen removal process is performed before the measurement process, so that the measurement process can be performed in a state where the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 is lowered. Therefore, in the determination process of step S105 in FIG. 5, it is possible to make it difficult to determine that the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1, and it is difficult to cause a voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1. can do.

In this embodiment, the circulation discharge port 15 is an example of a discharge port, and the oxygen removal device 40 is an example of a discharge means. In the discharge process in step S109 in FIG. 5, the oxygen removal device 40 performs oxygen removal control to discharge oxygen from the production space 12 from the circulation discharge port 15. As a result, the same oxygen removing device 40 is used in the oxygen removal process and the exhaust process performed before the measurement process to exhaust oxygen from the fabrication space 12. Therefore, it is not necessary to use dedicated devices for removing or discharging oxygen, respectively, in the oxygen removal process and the discharge process, so the number of parts in the battery manufacturing equipment 10 can be reduced.

Note that this embodiment includes a method for forming a manufacturing space for the electrode stack 100. The manufacturing space forming method for the electrode stack 100 includes a measurement process corresponding to the measurement process in step S103 in FIG. 5, a determination process corresponding to the determination process in step S105 in FIG. 5, and a discharge process in step S109 in FIG. and a discharge process. In the measurement step, the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 where the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by laminating the solid electrolyte layer 111, the positive electrode active material layer 121, and the negative electrode active material layer 131 is measured. In the determination step, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration C1 measured in the measurement step is greater than or equal to a preset threshold Th1. In the exhausting process, when it is determined in the determination process that the oxygen concentration C1 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1, oxygen in the production space 12 is exhausted. In the exhaust process, gas containing oxygen from the production space 12 is taken in, and a removed gas obtained by removing oxygen from the taken gas is sent into the production space 12. Even with this manufacturing space formation method, since the electrode stack 100 is placed in the manufacturing space 12 adjusted such that the oxygen concentration C1 is less than the threshold Th1, a voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1 occurs. It can be made difficult. Therefore, during a short circuit test, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of erroneous detection in the short circuit test due to the oxygen concentration C1.

<Second embodiment>
Next, a battery manufacturing equipment 10A according to the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the battery manufacturing equipment 10A according to this embodiment. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the battery manufacturing equipment 10A according to this embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the battery manufacturing equipment 10A includes a manufacturing chamber 11A, an oxygen concentration sensor 20, a circulation discharge path 30, a circulation supply path 35, an oxygen removal device 40, and a control device 80A. It is equipped with Furthermore, the battery manufacturing equipment 10A includes an exhaust path 50, an exhaust pump 55, an inlet path 60, and an inert gas generator 70. In addition, in this embodiment, the oxygen concentration sensor 20, the circulation discharge path 30, the circulation supply path 35, and the oxygen removal device 40 are respectively the oxygen concentration sensor 20 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. Since the discharge passage 30, the circulation supply passage 35, and the oxygen removal device 40 are the same, their description here will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 6, the fabrication chamber 11A is a space where a lamination process is performed, similar to the fabrication chamber 11 of the first embodiment, in which a solid electrolyte layer 111, a positive electrode active material layer 121, a negative electrode active material layer 131 ( It has a manufacturing space 12 in which the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by laminating the electrode stack 100 (see FIG. 1). The production space 12 is filled with an inert gas (for example, nitrogen). Similar to the fabrication chamber 11 of the first embodiment, the fabrication chamber 11A is provided with a circulation outlet 15 and a circulation inlet 16.

In this embodiment, a discharge port 17 is formed in the production chamber 11A. A discharge path 50 is connected to the discharge port 17 . One end of this discharge path 50 is connected to the discharge port 17 and communicates with the production space 12 of the production chamber 11A. The other end of the discharge path 50 communicates with the outside of the manufacturing chamber 11A. The discharge path 50 is made of, for example, a flexible material (such as rubber). The discharge path 50 is, for example, a tube and has a tubular shape.

A discharge pump 55 is provided in the discharge path 50. The discharge pump 55 is an example of a discharge means, and is a pump that discharges at least oxygen from the production space 12 through the discharge port 17. By driving the discharge pump 55, part of the oxygen and moisture contained in the gas in the production space 12 is discharged to the outside of the production chamber 11A through the discharge port 17 and the discharge path 50. Further, in this embodiment, since the production space 12 is an inert gas atmosphere, nitrogen, which is an example of an inert gas, is also discharged through the discharge port 17 and the discharge path 50 together with oxygen and moisture.

In this embodiment, a supply port 18 is formed in the manufacturing chamber 11A. A supply path 60 is connected to the supply port 18 . One end of the supply path 60 is connected to the supply port 18 and communicates with the production space 12 of the production chamber 11A. The other end of the supply path 60 is connected to an inert gas generator 70. The supply path 60 is formed of, for example, a flexible material (such as rubber). The supply path 60 is, for example, a tube and has a tubular shape.

The inert gas generator 70 is a device that generates an inert gas and sends the generated inert gas into the production space 12. In this embodiment, the inert gas generator 70 generates nitrogen as the inert gas. However, the inert gas generator 70 may also generate argon. In this embodiment, the inert gas generated from the inert gas generator 70 is sent into the production space 12 of the production chamber 11A through the supply path 60 and the supply port 18.

As shown in FIG. 7, the control device 80A according to the present embodiment, like the control device 80 of the first embodiment, includes a computer arithmetic unit (processor, CPU (Central Processing Unit), MPU (Micro-processing unit)). ) and storage devices (memory, hard disk, etc.). The control device 80A is communicably connected to the oxygen concentration sensor 20 and the oxygen removal device 40 (specifically, the circulation pump 41). Further, the control device 80A is communicably connected to the discharge pump 55 and the inert gas generator 70. The control device 80A controls the drive of the discharge pump 55, the timing at which the inert gas generator 70 generates inert gas, and the like.

In this embodiment, the control device 80A includes a storage section 81, an oxygen removal control section 83, a measurement section 85, a determination section 87, an emission control section 89A, a supply control section 95, and a first notification section 91. and a second notification section 92. Each part of the control device 80A may be configured by software or hardware. Each part of the control device 80A may be realized by one or more processors, or may be incorporated into a circuit.

Next, in the battery manufacturing equipment 10A according to the present embodiment, a procedure for adjusting the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11A will be described along the flowchart of FIG. 8.

In this embodiment, the oxygen removal process in step S201, the measurement process in step S203, the determination process in step S205, and the inspection failure notification process in step S207 shown in FIG. 8 are the steps of the first embodiment shown in FIG. This process is similar to the oxygen removal process in S101, the determination process in step S103, the determination process in step S105, and the inspection failure notification process in step S107. Further, the inspection possibility notification process in step S211 and the short circuit inspection in step S213 shown in FIG. 8 are similar to the inspection possibility notification process in step S111 and the short circuit inspection in step S113 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. This is the process. Therefore, description of each process of steps S201, S203, S205, S207, S211, and S213 will be omitted.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, after the inspection failure notification process in step S207, the discharge process in step S209 and the supply process in step S210 are performed in this order. The discharge process in step S209 supplies inert gas to the fabrication space 12 when it is determined in the determination process in step S205 that the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1. In this embodiment, the discharge process in step S209 is executed by the discharge control unit 89A (see FIG. 7) of the control device 80A. The discharge control unit 89A controls the discharge pump 55 to drive the discharge pump 55. When the discharge pump 55 is driven, as shown in FIG. It is discharged to the outside of 11A. With this, oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 can be exhausted.

As shown in FIG. 8, after the oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 is exhausted in the exhaust process in step S209, a supply process is performed in step S210. The supply process is a process of inhaling inert gas into the production space 12. In this embodiment, the feeding process is executed by the feeding control unit 95 (see FIG. 7) of the control device 80A. The supply control unit 95 drives the inert gas generator 70 shown in FIG. As a result, inert gas (typically nitrogen) is generated from the inert gas generator 70. The inert gas generated by the inert gas generator 70 is sent into the production space 12 through the supply path 60 and the supply port 18 . After the feeding process in step S210, the measurement process in step S203 is performed again.

In this way, by performing the processes in step S209 and step S210, inert gas is supplied to the manufacturing space 12 while oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 is exhausted. Therefore, the oxygen concentration C1 within the manufacturing space 12 can be lowered. Note that there are no particular limitations on the time during which the exhaust process in step S209 is performed and the amount of gas containing oxygen to be exhausted, and the time during which the supply process in step S210 is performed and the amount of inert gas that is inhaled. , the oxygen concentration C1 of the manufacturing space 12 measured by the measurement process in step S203 may be set as appropriate.

As described above, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the supply port 18 is formed in the manufacturing chamber 11A. The battery manufacturing equipment 10A includes an inert gas generator 70 that is connected to the supply port 18 and feeds inert gas into the manufacturing space 12. The control device 80A is configured to be able to perform a supply process (step S210 in FIG. 8) for supplying inert gas into the production space 12 after the discharge process (step S209 in FIG. 8). For example, there may be cases where it is desired to discharge an amount of oxygen that exceeds the amount of oxygen that can be removed by the oxygen removal device 40 in the discharge process. Even in such a case, the oxygen concentration C1 in the fabrication space 12 can be made to be less than the threshold value Th1 by feeding new inert gas into the fabrication space 12 in the supply process after exhausting oxygen with the exhaust pump 55. be able to.

In this embodiment, the inert gas supplied in the supply process of step S210 in FIG. 8 is nitrogen. With this, by feeding nitrogen into the manufacturing space 12 during the supply process, the manufacturing space 12 can be made into an inert gas atmosphere.

Note that even in this embodiment, a method for forming a manufacturing space for the electrode stack 100 is included. The manufacturing space forming method for the electrode stack 100 includes a measurement process corresponding to the measurement process in step S203 in FIG. 8, a determination process corresponding to the determination process in step S205 in FIG. 8, and a discharge process in step S209 in FIG. 8, and a feeding process corresponding to the feeding process of step S210 in FIG. In the measurement step, the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 where the electrode stack 100 is manufactured by laminating the solid electrolyte layer 111, the positive electrode active material layer 121, and the negative electrode active material layer 131 is measured. In the determination step, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration C1 measured in the measurement step is greater than or equal to a preset threshold Th1. In the exhausting process, when it is determined in the determination process that the oxygen concentration C1 is equal to or higher than the threshold value Th1, oxygen in the production space 12 is exhausted. In the supply process, after the oxygen in the production space 12 is exhausted in the discharge process, new inert gas is supplied to the production space 12. Even with this manufacturing space formation method, since the electrode stack 100 is placed in the manufacturing space 12 adjusted such that the oxygen concentration C1 is less than the threshold Th1, a voltage drop in the electrode stack 100 due to the oxygen concentration C1 occurs. It can be made difficult. Therefore, during a short circuit test, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of erroneous detection in the short circuit test due to the oxygen concentration C1.

<Third embodiment>
Next, a battery manufacturing equipment 10B according to a third embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the battery manufacturing equipment 10B according to this embodiment has the same configuration as the battery manufacturing equipment 10A according to the second embodiment, and includes a manufacturing chamber 11A, an oxygen concentration sensor 20, and a circulation discharge path 30. , a circulation supply passage 35, an oxygen removal device 40, a discharge passage 50, a discharge pump 55, a supply passage 60, and an inert gas generation device 70.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of the battery manufacturing equipment 10B according to this embodiment. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the battery manufacturing equipment 10B further includes a control device 80B. Like the control device 80 of the first embodiment, the control device 80B includes a computer arithmetic unit (also referred to as a processor, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), or an MPU (Micro-processing unit)) and a storage device (memory, etc.). hard disk, etc.). The control device 80B is communicably connected to the oxygen concentration sensor 20 and the oxygen removal device 40 (specifically, the circulation pump 41). Further, the control device 80B is communicably connected to the discharge pump 55 and the inert gas generator 70. The control device 80B controls the driving of the discharge pump 55, the timing at which the inert gas generator 70 generates inert gas, and the like.

The control device 80B includes a storage section 81, an oxygen removal control section 83, a measurement section 85, a determination section 87, a first emission control section 89B, a second emission control section 89C, a supply control section 95, It includes a removal determination section 97, a first notification section 91, and a second notification section 92. Each part of the control device 80B may be configured by software or hardware. Each part of the control device 80B may be realized by one or more processors, or may be incorporated into a circuit.

Next, in the battery manufacturing equipment 10B according to the present embodiment, a procedure for adjusting the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 of the manufacturing chamber 11A will be described along the flowchart of FIG. 10.

In this embodiment, the oxygen removal process in step S301 in FIG. 10, the measurement process in step S303, the determination process in step S305, and the inspection failure notification process in step S307 are respectively performed in step S101 in the first embodiment shown in FIG. This process is similar to the oxygen removal process in step S103, the determination process in step S105, and the inspection failure notification process in step S107. Further, the inspection possibility notification process in step S311 in FIG. 10 and the short circuit inspection in step S313 are the same as the inspection possibility notification process in step S111 and the short circuit inspection in step S113 in the first embodiment in FIG. 5, respectively. It is. Therefore, description of each process of steps S301, S303, S305, S307, S311, and S313 will be omitted.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the removal determination process in step S308 is performed after the inspection failure notification process in step S307. In this embodiment, the removal determination process is executed by the removal determination unit 97 (see FIG. 9) of the control device 80B. The removal determination unit 97 determines whether or not it is possible to cause the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control. Here, the oxygen removal control is a control performed by the oxygen removal device 40, which takes in gas containing oxygen and moisture from the production space 12 through the circulation discharge path 30, and removes oxygen and moisture from the taken in gas. This refers to a series of controls for sending the removed gas into the manufacturing space 12 through the circulation supply path 35.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the oxygen removal device 40, oxygen and moisture can be removed from a gas containing oxygen and moisture by allowing the adsorption filter 42 to adsorb oxygen and moisture. This adsorption filter 42 has a preset upper limit for adsorbing oxygen and moisture. Therefore, if the gas contains oxygen and moisture exceeding the upper limit, the oxygen and moisture cannot be sufficiently removed.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the removal determination unit 97 determines whether the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 is equal to or higher than the removal threshold Th2 (see FIG. 10). As shown in FIG. 9, this removal threshold Th2 is a value stored in advance in the storage unit 81, and is a value higher than the threshold Th1. The removal threshold Th2 is a value such that the amount of oxygen contained in the air taken in from the production space 12 by driving the circulation pump 41 shown in FIG. 6 exceeds the above upper limit.

Therefore, in step S308 in FIG. 10, if the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 is less than the removal threshold Th2, the removal determination unit 97 determines that the oxygen contained in the air taken in from the manufacturing space 12 by the oxygen removal device 40 is It is determined that all of the oxygen can be removed, and it is determined that it is possible to cause the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control. In this case, the determination result in step S308 is set as NO, and the process then proceeds to step S309.

In step S309, a first discharge process is performed. The first discharge process in step S309 is the same as the discharge process in step S109 (see FIG. 5) of the first embodiment. That is, in step S309, the first exhaust control unit 89 shown in FIG. 9 causes the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control by driving the circulation pump 41 of the oxygen removal device 40. As shown in FIG. 10, after such a first discharge process is performed, the measurement process of step S303 is performed again.

On the other hand, in step S308, if the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 is equal to or higher than the removal threshold Th2, the removal determination unit 97 uses the oxygen removal device 40 to remove all the oxygen contained in the air taken in from the manufacturing space 12. It is determined that the oxygen cannot be removed, and it is determined that it is impossible to cause the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control. In this case, the determination result in step S308 is YES, and then the second discharge process in step S315 and the supply process in step S317 are performed in order.

Note that the second discharge process in step S315 is the same as the discharge process in step S209 (see FIG. 8) of the second embodiment. That is, in step S315, the second discharge control section 89A shown in FIG. 9 controls the discharge pump 55 to drive the discharge pump 55. As shown in FIG. 6, when the discharge pump 55 is driven, the gas (typically, inert gas) containing oxygen and moisture in the manufacturing space 12 is pumped through the exhaust port 17 and the exhaust path 50 into the manufacturing chamber. It is discharged to the outside of 11A. With this, oxygen in the manufacturing space 12 can be exhausted.

The feeding process in step S317 in FIG. 10 is the same as the feeding process in step S210 (see FIG. 8) in the second embodiment. That is, in step S317, the supply control unit 95 shown in FIG. 9 drives the inert gas generator 70. As a result, inert gas (typically nitrogen) is generated from the inert gas generator 70. As shown in FIG. 6, the inert gas generated by the inert gas generator 70 is sent into the production space 12 through the supply path 60 and the supply port 18. As shown in FIG. 10, after the feeding process in step S317, the measurement process in step S303 is performed again.

As described above, in this embodiment, the oxygen removal device 40 is used to remove oxygen from the manufacturing space 12 in the first exhaust process in step S309 depending on whether the oxygen removal device 40 can perform oxygen removal control. It is selected whether to discharge the oxygen or to discharge the oxygen from the production space 12 using the discharge pump 55 in the second discharge process in step S315. Therefore, even if the oxygen removal device 40 cannot be used, the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 can be lowered by exhausting oxygen from the manufacturing space 12 using the exhaust pump 55.

In the present embodiment, in the removal determination process of step S308, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration C1 measured in the measurement process of step S305 is equal to or higher than the removal threshold Th2, which is higher than the threshold Th1, and when it is less than the removal threshold Th2, It is determined that it is possible to cause the oxygen removal device 40 to perform oxygen removal control. In this way, depending on the measured oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12, the oxygen removal device 40 is used to exhaust the oxygen in the manufacturing space 12, or the exhaust pump 55 is used to exhaust the oxygen in the manufacturing space 12. By selecting whether to do so, the oxygen concentration C1 in the manufacturing space 12 can be lowered.

10, 10A, 10B Battery production equipment 11 Production room 12 Production space 15 Circulation outlet 16 Circulation inlet 17 Outlet 18 Inlet 20 Oxygen concentration sensor 30 Circulation discharge path 35 Circulation inlet path 40 Oxygen removal device 50 Discharge path 55 Discharge Pump 60 Supply path 70 Inert gas generator 80, 80A, 80B Control device 100 Electrode stack 111 Solid electrolyte layer 121 Positive electrode active material layer 131 Negative electrode active material layer

Claims (13)

a manufacturing chamber having a manufacturing space for manufacturing an electrode stack by laminating a solid electrolyte layer containing a sulfide-based amorphous solid electrolyte, a positive electrode active material layer, and a negative electrode active material layer;
an oxygen concentration sensor that measures the oxygen concentration in the production space;
an exhaust port formed in the manufacturing chamber, through which at least oxygen in the manufacturing space is exhausted;
a discharge means for discharging at least oxygen from the production space from the discharge port;
a control device;
Equipped with
The control device includes:
a measurement process of measuring the oxygen concentration in the production space;
a determination process that determines whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement process is equal to or higher than a preset threshold;
When the oxygen concentration is determined to be equal to or higher than the threshold value in the determination process, an inspection impossibility notification process is performed to notify a worker that a short circuit test cannot be performed on the electrode stack in the manufacturing space. ,
After the inspection failure notification process, an exhaust process of exhausting oxygen from the production space;
When the oxygen concentration is determined to be less than the threshold value in the determination process, an inspection possibility notification process that notifies a worker that a short circuit inspection can be performed on the electrode stack in the manufacturing space;
configured to be executable,
The threshold value is an oxygen concentration at which the voltage drop of the electrode stack is suppressed to a predetermined tolerance value. A circulation outlet and a circulation inlet are formed in the production chamber,
a circulation discharge path connected to the circulation discharge port;
a circulation supply path connected to the circulation supply port;
an oxygen removal device connected to the circulation discharge path and the circulation supply path;
The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 1, comprising: The control device takes the oxygen-containing gas from the manufacturing space through the circulation discharge path into the oxygen removal device, and supplies the removed gas, which is obtained by removing oxygen from the taken gas, through the circulation supply path to the manufacturing space. It is configured to be able to perform oxygen removal processing that controls the removal of oxygen sent into the space,
The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 2, wherein the control device executes the measurement process after the oxygen removal process. The discharge port and the circulation discharge port are the same,
The exhaust means and the oxygen removal device are the same,
4. The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 3, wherein in the discharge process, the oxygen removal control is performed by the oxygen removal device. A supply port is formed in the production chamber,
an inert gas generator connected to the supply port and feeding inert gas into the production space;
The battery manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control device is configured to be able to perform a supply process of supplying an inert gas into the production space after the discharge process. Facility. The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 5, wherein the inert gas supplied in the supply process is nitrogen. A supply port is formed in the production chamber,
an inert gas generator connected to the supply port and feeding inert gas into the production space;
When the oxygen concentration is determined to be equal to or higher than the threshold value by the determination process, the control device executes a removal determination process to determine whether or not it is possible to cause the oxygen removal device to perform the oxygen removal control. configured to allow
In the discharge process, when it is determined by the removal determination process that it is possible to cause the oxygen removal apparatus to perform the oxygen removal control, causing the oxygen removal apparatus to perform the oxygen removal control;
In the discharge process, when it is determined by the removal determination process that it is impossible to cause the oxygen removal apparatus to perform the oxygen removal control, the oxygen in the production space is discharged from the exhaust port;
The control device is configured to supply an inert gas to the production space after the discharge process when it is determined by the removal determination process that it is impossible to cause the oxygen removal apparatus to perform the oxygen removal control. The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 3, which is configured to be able to perform input processing. In the removal determination process, it is determined whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement process is equal to or higher than a removal threshold, which is higher than the threshold, and when it is less than the removal threshold, the oxygen removal control is performed on the oxygen removal device. The battery manufacturing equipment according to claim 7, which determines that it is possible to perform the battery manufacturing equipment. The battery manufacturing equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the threshold value is any oxygen concentration of 100 ppm or less. The battery manufacturing equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the manufacturing space is filled with an inert gas. a measurement step of measuring the oxygen concentration in a production space in which an electrode stack is produced by laminating a solid electrolyte layer containing a sulfide-based amorphous solid electrolyte, a positive electrode active material layer, and a negative electrode active material layer;
a determination step of determining whether the oxygen concentration measured in the measurement step is equal to or higher than a preset threshold;
In the determination step, when it is determined that the oxygen concentration is equal to or higher than the threshold value, an inspection impossibility notification step of notifying a worker that a short circuit test cannot be performed on the electrode stack in the manufacturing space; ,
After the inspection impossibility notification step, an exhaust step of exhausting oxygen from the production space;
In the determination step, when it is determined that the oxygen concentration is less than the threshold value, a test possibility notification step of notifying a worker that a short circuit test can be performed on the electrode stack in the manufacturing space;
encompasses,
The method for forming an electrode stack manufacturing space, wherein the threshold value is an oxygen concentration at which a voltage drop in the electrode stack is suppressed to a predetermined tolerance value. 12. Forming a manufacturing space for an electrode stack according to claim 11, wherein in the discharge step, a gas containing oxygen in the manufacturing space is taken in, and a removed gas obtained by removing oxygen from the taken in gas is sent into the manufacturing space. Method. 12. The method for forming an electrode stack manufacturing space according to claim 11, further comprising a supplying step of supplying new inert gas to the manufacturing space after exhausting oxygen from the manufacturing space in the exhausting step.

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