Battery Positive/Negative Color Identification Solution: Application of Atonm CL4 Color Sensor

Customer Requirements

A battery manufacturing enterprise needs to quickly and accurately identify the positive and negative poles of batteries on the production line. The positive pole is equipped with a red rubber ring, and the negative pole with a black rubber ring. It is required that the detection distance be no less than 300mm, and the solution should be adaptable to workpiece inclination, distance fluctuations and light changes that may exist in the production environment.

I. Analysis of Technical Challenges

Stability of Long-distance Detection

Traditional photoelectric sensors are susceptible to light attenuation at distances over 300mm, leading to insufficient signal strength.

The battery production line operates at a high cycle rate, which requires guaranteed detection accuracy even during high-speed movement of workpieces.

Difficulties in Color Differentiation

Red and black rubber rings may exhibit low contrast (e.g., appearing as dark gray vs. black) under certain lighting conditions.

Minor color differences may exist between rubber ring batches, necessitating reliable identification capability.

Environmental Adaptability

Production line vibration, workpiece inclination (within ±15°), and ambient light interference may compromise detection stability.

II. Solution

In response to the above challenges, the Atonm white spot color sensor CL4 is recommended. The CL4 consists of a white LED and custom light-receiving components. It performs detection based on the appearance (color) of the target object, thus enabling accurate capture of subtle color differences. In addition, since detection is based on appearance (color), it is less susceptible to the impact of inclination or distance variations, and can fully meet the detection requirements of the customer's production line.

III. Customer Benefits

Production Efficiency Improvement

High-speed stable detection: With a response time of 200μs, it meets the high-speed detection demand of over 200 pieces per minute on the production line.

Quality Cost Reduction

Accurate color identification: Reduces rework costs caused by reversed positive/negative poles (estimated savings of about 200 yuan per 10,000 pieces).

Environmental Interference Resistance

Avoids false alarms triggered by changes in workshop lighting, cutting down manual intervention costs.

Enhanced Deployment Flexibility

Flexible installation: The spot diameter is adjustable from 3–20mm, supporting installation in narrow spaces or elevated positions.

IV. Summary

The Atonm CL4 white spot color sensor systematically addresses the three core challenges of battery positive/negative pole detection through long-distance high-precision color detection and anti-interference design. Its maintenance-free hardware design and convenient local parameter adjustment create direct economic value (reduced defect rate and maintenance costs) and indirect efficiency value (improved production line flexibility) for customers, helping enterprises achieve intelligent production upgrades.