FORWARD

Brief Description

The FORWARD cooperation project, “Forecasting and Optimizing of Welding for Advanced Production of Battery Cells,” addresses the urgent need for intelligent and digitized battery cell manufacturing. The project focuses on the critical step of cell conductor welding in cell assembly. The welding process considered is metal ultrasonic welding. The core content of the project is the development and scaling of innovative measurement technology and evaluation methods for the automated monitoring of the welding process with prediction of the quality achieved and the digital integration of innovative concepts such as the digital twin. This digital connection enables process monitoring to take into account interactions with previous and subsequent manufacturing steps of the individual battery cell and leads to a reduction in scrap and quality improvements not only during welding but throughout the entire cell assembly process. The project content is thus directly aimed at cost and resource savings in battery cell production.

The work plan comprises seven work packages dealing with the highly cooperative scaling of a new mixing technology in battery cell production:

WP 1: WP 1 defines requirements and application scenarios that form the basis for the following work packages.

WP 2: In WP 2, plant and measurement technology are prototypically developed and implemented in the laboratory.

WP 3: In parallel, the concept for data acquisition and digitization of the plant is developed in WP 3.

WP 4: Based on the data from the prototype tests and considerations regarding data connectivity, a predictive quality model is developed in WP 4 that predicts the welding quality.

WP 5: In WP 5, the system is validated at Fraunhofer FFB. Here, it is integrated into an industry-oriented sample line and the interactions with other process steps and the finished cells are examined.

WP 6: In WP 6, the results are transferred.

WP 7: In WP 7, project coordination takes place.

Fraunhofer FFB focuses on scientific progress, while the economic exploitation of the project results offers opportunities for the participating partners and the European economy. Findings are disseminated through scientific publications, reports, and trade fairs. In the medium term, the results will be integrated into research and education two to three years after the project ends, supported by training programs offered by the European Learning Lab Battery Cells ELLB. Insights into improvements in welding processes and digitalization will also be used in future research projects to strengthen industrial production in Germany.

Fraunhofer FFB is developing standardized processes for the digital integration of welding machines based on the project results. This enables companies and research institutions to integrate machines more efficiently into IIoT-Networks. The insights gained also provide potential for further scientific projects and publications, and strengthen Fraunhofer FFB's competencies. The digital integration of the entire battery production value chain will accompany future research and industry projects.