iMoBatt - INNOVATIVE FUNCTION INTEGRATED MODULE DESIGN FOR MODULAR BATTERY PACKS

The increasing energy demand of the growing world population as well as the scarcity of fossil fuels and the necessary reduction of greenhouse gases for environment protection highlight the need for renewable energies. However, energy sources such as solar systems and wind turbines require temporal decoupling of energy generation and consumption. As a result electrical energy storage devices become increasingly relevant to compensate fluctuations and ensure stable energy supply.

Therefore, the iMoBatt research project investigates the economic production of electrochemical energy storage systems. The entire life cycle from design and development through production and assembly to operation and recycling is considered. The objective of the project is to develop a new modular system for customized battery packs. Product design in support of automation and assembly as well as direct function integration facilitates an innovative product design. This enables both reduction of manufacturing costs and enhancement of flexibility and scalability. Subsequently, an automated, quantity-flexible assembly line with integrated quality assurance will be set up. At this point human-robot collaboration is another research focus. In the field of joining technology novel methods for electrical contacting of battery cells using laser welding will be also investigated.

The project consortium consists of two chairs from the Technical University of Munich, the Institute for Machine Tools and Industrial Management (iwb) and the Chair for Electrical Energy Storage Technology (EES) as well as the industrial partners MBFZ toolcraft GmbH, Schunk GmbH and Varta Storage GmbH.