Patent Description:
Recently, research and development of secondary batteries have been actively performed. Herein, the secondary batteries, which are chargeable/dischargeable batteries, may include all of conventional nickel (Ni)/cadmium (Cd) batteries, Ni/metal hydride (MH) batteries, etc., and recent lithium-ion batteries. Among the secondary batteries, a lithium-ion battery has a much higher energy density than those of the conventional Ni/Cd batteries, Ni/MH batteries, etc. Moreover, the lithium-ion battery may be manufactured to be small and lightweight, such that the lithium-ion battery has been used as a power source of mobile devices. In addition, the lithium ion battery is attracting attention as a next-generation energy storage medium as a usage range thereof is expanded to a power source of electric vehicles.

In a battery production system, a battery is moved through a conveyor belt while being carried on a tray, and may be damaged for various reasons in a logistics movement process. For example, when logistics are congested in a specific section of the conveyor belt, cracks may occur due to collisions between logistics, leading to deterioration of battery product quality. Thus, proactive or follow-up management of product quality deterioration occurring in logistics movement in a battery production system is required.

<CIT> relates to a battery production process and the tracing of battery container trays. <CIT> regards impact detection and monitoring in products being transported.

Technical problems of the embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to the above-described technical problems, and other unmentioned technical problems would be clearly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art from the following description.

A battery production system disclosed herein includes a tray including a battery, a plurality of collectors configured to perform wireless communication with the tray, and a server configured to track a position of the tray and whether an impact occurs in the tray based on information received from the plurality of collectors, in which the tray includes a measurement unit configured to sense an impact and a communication unit configured to perform wireless communication with the plurality of collectors, the measurement unit is configured to reduce a measurement interval at a designated first rate upon sensing the impact, and the communication unit is configured to reduce an interval of the wireless communication at a designated second rate upon sensing the impact.

An operating method of a battery production system disclosed herein includes operations of sensing, by a tray, whether an impact occurs at designated measurement intervals, performing, by the tray, wireless communication with a plurality of collectors, upon sensing the impact, reducing, by the tray, a measurement interval at a designated first rate and reducing an interval of the wireless communication at a designated second rate, transmitting, by the plurality of collectors, a result of the wireless communication with the tray to a server, and determining, by the server, a position of the tray and whether an impact occurs in the tray based on information received from the plurality of collectors.

A battery production system according to an embodiment disclosed herein may check in advance factors of battery product quality deterioration occurring in logistics movement by tracking in real time a position and impact occurrence of a tray.

The battery production system according to an embodiment disclosed herein may manage a congestion section and minimize a loss by monitoring in real time logistics movement of a battery.

The battery production system according to an embodiment disclosed herein may more precisely track data related to a battery suspected of being defective in a monitoring process.

The battery management apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed herein may reduce a cost for detecting and managing a low-performance battery.

Hereinafter, various embodiments disclosed herein will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this document, identical reference numerals will be used for identical components in the drawings, and the identical components will not be redundantly described.

For various embodiments disclosed herein, specific structural or functional descriptions are only exemplified for the purpose of describing the embodiments, and various embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented in various forms, and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments described herein.

As used in various embodiments, the terms "1st, "2nd", "first", "second", or the like may modify various components regardless of importance, and do not limit the components. For example, a first component may be named as a second component without departing from the right scope of an embodiment disclosed herein, and similarly, the second component may be named as the first component.

Terms used in the present document are used for only describing a specific exemplary embodiment of the disclosure and may not have an intention to limit the scope of other exemplary embodiments of the disclosure. It is to be understood that the singular forms include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

All terms including technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the embodiments disclosed herein belong. In some cases, the terms defined herein may be interpreted to exclude embodiments disclosed herein.

<FIG> illustrates a battery production system according to various embodiments.

Referring to <FIG>, a battery production system <NUM> may include at least one trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, a plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>, and a server <NUM>.

The trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> may move along a conveyor belt while containing a battery. When the tray <NUM>-<NUM> including the battery collides with a stopper <NUM> of the conveyor belt or collision occurs between the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> due to logistics congestion, the quality and performance of the battery may be deteriorated due to a crack occurring in the battery (or a pouch including the battery), such that positions and impact occurrence of the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> need to be monitored in real time.

The plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may be disposed at a distance spaced from each conveyor belt and may wirelessly transmit and receive a signal to and from the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. Each of the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may measure distances to the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> through wireless communication with the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, and may receive information related to impact (e.g., impact amount information) from the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. In this case, a wireless communication method between the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> and the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> may vary, and for example, to improve positioning accuracy, an ultra wide band (UWB) signal may be used.

The server <NUM> may be configured to monitor in real time the positions and impact occurrence of the trays <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> based on information received from the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>, and to accumulate and use the monitored data. For example, the server <NUM> may calculate the position of the tray <NUM>-<NUM> by using various positioning methods for a distance of each of the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> to the tray <NUM>-<NUM>. The positioning method may include, for example, a triangulation method. The server <NUM> may determine whether impact occurs in the tray <NUM>-<NUM>, based on the impact amount information of the tray <NUM>-<NUM> received from the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>. The server <NUM> may accumulate data related to impact occurrence (e.g., position, time, and frequency of impact occurrence, etc.) to allow a user to recognize a reason for impact occurrence and to cure the same, and output a notification immediately upon determining that the impact occurs, to allow the user to quickly detect a defective battery occurring in a logistics movement process. Alternatively, when sensing impact occurrence in the tray <NUM>, the server <NUM> may notify the user of a battery suspected of being defective by using a designated method (e.g., lighting or alarm) when the tray <NUM> reaches a final point of the conveyor belt.

<FIG> is a block diagram of a battery production system according to various embodiments.

Referring to <FIG>, the tray <NUM> may include a measurement unit <NUM> and a communication unit <NUM>. Although not shown in <FIG>, the tray <NUM> may further include a power source unit (e.g., a battery) that supplies power to implement the measurement unit <NUM> and the communication unit <NUM>. The measurement unit <NUM> may be configured to obtain data for calculating the amount of impact occurring during movement of the tray <NUM>. The 'measurement unit' may also be referred to as a 'measurement device', a 'measurement module', a 'measurement circuit', or a 'sensor'. For example, the measurement unit <NUM> may include at least one of an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor (an angular velocity sensor). The acceleration sensor may sense an acceleration in x, y, and z axes, and the gyro sensor may sense an angular velocity. The communication unit <NUM> may be configured to perform wireless communication with the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>. The 'communication unit' may also be referred to as a 'communication device', a 'communication module', a 'communication circuit', or a 'modem'. For example, the communication unit <NUM> may support a UWB communication protocol, without being limited thereto.

Due to the finitude of power supplied to the measurement unit <NUM> and the communication unit <NUM>, each of the measurement unit <NUM> and the communication unit <NUM> may perform an operation at designated intervals. For example, the measurement unit <NUM> may measure an acceleration or an angular velocity at designated measurement intervals, and the communication unit <NUM> may transmit a signal to the collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> at designated communication intervals. When impact is sensed in the tray <NUM> according to embodiments, the tray <NUM> may adjust a measurement interval of the measurement unit <NUM> and a communication interval and a signal strength of the communication unit <NUM> to improve the precision of impact amount calculation and accurately provide a position of the tray <NUM>. A detailed embodiment related to adjustment of the measurement interval, the communication interval, and the signal strength will be described with reference to <FIG>.

The plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may respectively include measurement units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>, and communication units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>. The plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may further include a power source unit (e.g., a battery) that supplies power to implement the measurement units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>, and the communication units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>. The communication units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may be configured to perform wireless communication (e.g., UWB) with the communication unit <NUM> of the tray <NUM>. The measurement units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may calculate a distance to the tray <NUM> based on a wireless communication result. For example, the communication unit <NUM>-<NUM> of the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may transmit a signal to the communication unit <NUM> of the tray <NUM> and the receive a signal from the communication unit <NUM>. The measurement unit <NUM>-<NUM> of the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may calculate a distance between the collector <NUM>-<NUM> and the tray <NUM> by using a round-trip time of a signal. The communication unit <NUM>-<NUM> of the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may receive data related to an impact time (e.g., an acceleration and an angular velocity) from the try <NUM> through a signal for distance measurement or a signal that is separate from the signal. The communication units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> of the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> may transmit information related to the tray <NUM>, e.g., at least one of distance information and impact amount information to the server <NUM>.

The server <NUM> may track in real time the positions and impact occurrence of the tray <NUM>-<NUM> based on information received from the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM>. According to an embodiment, the server <NUM> may transmit a signal for time synchronization to the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> at designated intervals to improve the accuracy of position calculation based on a triangulation method.

<FIG> illustrate a measurement interval and a communication interval according to various embodiments.

<FIG> shows a measurement interval and a communication interval before sensing of impact in the tray <NUM>, and <FIG> shows a measurement interval and a communication interval after sensing of impact in the tray <NUM>. In each drawing, a horizontal axis indicates time.

Referring to <FIG>, the measurement unit <NUM> may perform measurement for impact sensing at designated measurement intervals Tmp and in a designated measurement time Tm. The communication unit <NUM> may perform wireless communication with a collector at designated communication intervals Tcp and in a designated communication time Tc. For example, when data related to impact is generated by the measurement unit <NUM>, the communication unit <NUM> may transmit data received from the measurement unit <NUM> to at least one collector (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM>). The communication unit <NUM> may transmit a signal at a designated signal strength S. A signal for distance measurement and a signal for impact data transmission may be identical or separate signals.

Referring to <FIG>, the tray <NUM> may change a measurement interval of the measurement unit <NUM> and a communication interval <NUM> of the communication unit <NUM> in response to sensing of impact. For example, when data (e.g., an acceleration or an angular velocity) measured in a previous measurement time exceeds a threshold value, the measurement unit <NUM> may perform measurement at measurement intervals Tmp' reduced at a designated first rate from the measurement intervals Tmp to improve measurement accuracy. The communication unit <NUM> may also perform wireless communication at communication intervals Tcp' reduced at a designated second rate from the communication intervals Tcp based on data (i.e., an acceleration or an angular velocity exceeding the threshold value) received from the measurement unit <NUM> to more frequently transmit the data to the collector <NUM>-<NUM>. The second rate may be equal to or different from the first rate. As the number of pieces of the data received from the tray <NUM> increases, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may more precisely measure a distance between the tray <NUM> and the collector <NUM>-<NUM>. Although not shown in <FIG>, when it is determined that the impact amount data received from the tray <NUM> exceeds the threshold value, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may reduce the communication intervals of the communication unit <NUM>-<NUM> to more frequently transmit the impact amount data of the tray <NUM> to the server <NUM>.

According to an embodiment, the communication unit <NUM> may increase a signal strength at a designated third rate. The third rate may be equal to or different from the first rate or the second rate. The collector <NUM>-<NUM> may sense occurrence of impact in the tray <NUM> by receiving a signal of an increased strength even though failing to receive separate impact amount data. Moreover, when the signal strength increases, not only the collector <NUM>-<NUM>, but also the server <NUM> located farther than the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may also receive the signal of the communication unit <NUM>, such that the server <NUM> may quickly sense occurrence of impact.

<FIG> shows an example where a measurement interval, a communication interval, and a signal strength are controlled. For example, a first graph <NUM> indicates a value before impact is sensed in the tray <NUM>, and a second graph <NUM> indicates a value after impact is sensed in the tray <NUM>. When impact is sensed in the tray <NUM>, the measurement unit <NUM> may reduce a measurement interval to <NUM>/<NUM> and the communication unit <NUM> may reduce a communication interval to <NUM>/<NUM>. The communication unit <NUM> may double a signal strength.

<FIG> is an operating flowchart of a tray to control a measurement interval and a communication interval, according to various embodiments.

Referring to <FIG>, in operation <NUM>, the measurement unit <NUM> of the tray <NUM> may sense occurrence of impact at designated measurement intervals. For example, the measurement unit <NUM> may measure an acceleration or an angular velocity.

In operation <NUM>, the communication unit <NUM> of the tray <NUM> may perform wireless communication with the plurality of collectors <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, and <NUM>-<NUM> at designated communication intervals.

In operation <NUM>, the measurement unit <NUM> may sense impact in the tray <NUM>. For example, the measurement unit <NUM> may determine that the impact occurs when the measured acceleration or angular velocity exceeds a threshold value. When the measured data does not exceed the threshold value, the measurement unit <NUM> and the communication unit <NUM> may repeat operations <NUM> and <NUM>.

When the impact is sensed, the measurement unit <NUM> may reduce a measurement interval at a designated first rate in operation <NUM>. In operation <NUM>, the communication unit <NUM> may reduce a communication interval at a designated second rate.

According to an embodiment, the communication unit <NUM> may further perform operation <NUM>. More specifically, the communication unit <NUM> may increase a signal strength at a designated third rate.

<FIG> is an operating flowchart of a collector to transmit information about a tray, according to various embodiments.

Referring to <FIG>, in operation <NUM>, a collector (e.g., <NUM>-<NUM>) may perform wireless communication with the tray <NUM>.

In operation <NUM>, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may measure a distance to the tray <NUM> based on a wireless communication result. For example, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may measure the distance by using round-trip times of a transmission signal and a received signal.

In operation <NUM>, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may determine whether impact occurs in the tray <NUM>. For example, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may determine that the impact occurs in the tray <NUM> when data (e.g., an acceleration or an angular velocity) received from the tray <NUM> exceeds a threshold value or a strength of a signal received from the tray <NUM> exceeds a threshold value.

In operation <NUM>, the collector <NUM>-<NUM> may transmit the distance to the tray <NUM> and information about occurrence of impact of the tray <NUM> to the server <NUM>.

Even though all components constituting an embodiment disclosed herein have been described above as being combined into one or operating in combination, the embodiments disclosed herein are not necessarily limited to the embodiments. That is, within the object scope of the embodiments disclosed herein, all the components may operate by being selectively combined into one or more.

Moreover, terms such as "include", "constitute" or "have" described above may mean that the corresponding component may be inherent unless otherwise stated, and thus should be construed as further including other components rather than excluding other components. All terms including technical or scientific terms have the same meanings as those generally understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the embodiments disclosed herein pertain, unless defined otherwise. The terms used generally like terms defined in dictionaries should be interpreted as having meanings that are the same as the contextual meanings of the relevant technology and should not be interpreted as having ideal or excessively formal meanings unless they are clearly defined in the present document.

Claim 1:
A battery production system comprising:
a tray comprising a battery;
a plurality of collectors configured to perform wireless communication with the tray; and
a server configured to track a position of the tray and whether an impact occurs in the tray based on information received from the plurality of collectors,
wherein the tray comprises
a measurement unit configured to sense an impact and a communication unit configured to perform wireless communication with the plurality of collectors,
the measurement unit is configured to reduce a measurement interval at a designated first rate upon sensing the impact, and
the communication unit is configured to reduce an interval of the wireless communication at a designated second rate upon sensing the impact.