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EP-4233116-B1 - ASSEMBLY MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT AND METHOD FOR ELECTRODE ASSEMBLY

EP4233116B1EP 4233116 B1EP4233116 B1EP 4233116B1EP-4233116-B1

Inventors

  • YOON, SE HYUN
  • KIM, Beomsu
  • KIM, YONG NAM
  • KIM, Heeyong
  • PARK, DONG HYEUK
  • KIM, DONG MYUNG
  • JUNG, JAE HAN

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20220708

Claims (13)

  1. An electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) for fabricating a stack (S) comprising a first electrode (1), a second electrode (2), a first electrode section of a separator underlying the first electrode (1) and a second electrode section of the separator between the first and the second electrodes (1, 2), comprising: a stack table (10) configured for supporting the stack (S); a gripper (51) configured for fixing the stack (S); a first press unit (50) configured for heating and compressing the stack (S) fixed by the gripper (51), wherein the gripper (51) is in a form of a column or plate extending in a direction parallel to both of an upper plane defined by an upper surface of the stack (S) and a lower plane defined by a lower surface of the stack (S), and the gripper (51) presses a portion of both of the upper surface and the lower surface of the stack (S) to fix the stack (S), wherein the first press unit (50) includes a pair of pressing blocks configured for compressing opposing surfaces of the stack (S), wherein the pair of pressing blocks are moveable in directions towards each other and configured for compressing either one or both of the stack (S) and the gripper (51), characterized in that at least one of the pair of pressing blocks of the first press unit (50) includes a gripper groove having a shape corresponding to a shape of the gripper (51).
  2. The electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) of claim 1, wherein the first press unit (50) includes a press heater configured for heating the pair of pressing blocks, and wherein a length and a width of pressing surfaces of the pair of pressing blocks are greater than a corresponding length of the stack (S) and a corresponding width of the stack (S).
  3. The electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) claim 1, further comprising: a second press unit (60) configured for heating and compressing the stack (S), wherein a pair of pressing blocks (60a, 60b) of the second press unit (60) have a flat pressing surface that is in contact with the stack (S) and presses the stack (S).
  4. The electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) of claim 1, further comprising: a separator supply unit (20) configured for supplying the separator to the stack table (10); a first electrode supply unit (30) configured for stacking the first electrode (1) on the first electrode section of the separator supported by the stack table (10) and comprising: a first electrode seating table (31) configured for seating the first electrode (1) before the first electrode is stacked on the separator; and a first transfer head (32) configured for temporary fixation of the first electrode (1) and for transferring the first electrode (1) from the first electrode seating table (31) to the first electrode section of the separator supported by the stack table (10) while the first electrode (1) is temporarily fixed to the first transfer head (32); and a second electrode supply unit (40) configured for stacking the second electrode (2) on the second electrode section of the separator when the second electrode section is supported by the stack table (10), and comprising: a second electrode seating table (41) configured for seating the second electrode (2) before the second electrode (2) is stacked on the separator; and a second transfer head (42) configured for temporary fixation of the second electrode (2) and for transferring the second electrode (2) from the second electrode seating table (41) to the second electrode section of the separator supported by the stack table (10) while the second electrode (2) is temporarily fixed to the second transfer head (42).
  5. The electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) of claim 4, further comprising: a rotating unit configured for rotating the stack table (10), wherein the first electrode supply unit (30) is provided on a first side of the rotating unit, and the second electrode supply unit (40) is provided on a second side of the rotating unit opposite the first side, wherein the rotating unit rotates the stack table (10) to the first side to face the first transfer head (32) when the first electrode (1) is stacked and rotates the stack table (10) to the second side to face the second transfer head (42) when the second electrode (2) is stacked, and wherein the rotating unit is configured for alternately rotating the stack table (10) in a direction of the first electrode supply unit (30) and a direction of the second electrode supply unit (40).
  6. The electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) of claim 1, further comprising: a separator supply unit (20) configured for supplying the separator to the stack table (10); a first electrode supply unit (30) configured for stacking the first electrode (1) on the first electrode section of the separator supported by the stack table (10); a second electrode supply unit (40) configured for stacking the second electrode (2) on the second electrode section of the separator when the second electrode (2) is supported by the stack table (10); and a second press unit (60) configured for heating and compressing the stack (S).
  7. A method for manufacturing an electrode assembly, comprising: supplying and stacking a first electrode (1), a separator, and a second electrode (2) to manufacture a stack (S) of the first and the second electrodes (1,2) with the separator disposed between the first and the second electrodes (1, 2); heating and pressing the stack (S) with a first press unit (50) while fixing the stack (S) using a gripper (51); and heating and pressing the stack (S) using a second press unit (60) after the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the first press unit (50), wherein the gripper (51) is in a form of a column or plate extending in a direction parallel to both of an upper plane defined by an upper surface of the stack (S) and a lower plane defined by a lower surface of the stack (S), and the gripper (51) presses a portion of both of the upper surface and the lower surface of the stack (S) to fix the stack (S), wherein the first press unit (50) includes a pair of pressing blocks configured for compressing opposing surfaces of the stack (S), wherein the pair of pressing blocks are moveable in directions towards each other and configured for compressing either one or both of the stack (S) and the gripper (51), and wherein at least one of the pair of pressing blocks of the first press unit (50) includes a gripper groove having a shape corresponding to a shape of the gripper (51).
  8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) using the second press unit (60) is performed after the gripper (51) is removed.
  9. The method of claim 7, wherein a surface of the stack (S) on which the gripper (51) is not located is pressed by the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the first press unit (50).
  10. The method of claim 7, wherein the gripper (51) attaches to a surface of the stack (S) and presses the surface of the stack (S) at the location the gripper (51) attaches to the surface of the stack (S) during the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the first press unit (50).
  11. The method of claim 7, wherein the stack (S) is pressed for a time in a range from 5 seconds to 20 seconds within an environment having an ambient temperature in a range from 45°C to 75°C and with an applied pressure in a range from 1 MPa to 2.5 MPa during the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the first press unit (50), and wherein the stack (S) is pressed for a time in a range from 5 seconds to 60 seconds within an environment having an ambient temperature in a range from 50°C to 90°C and with an applied pressure in a range from 1 MPa to 6 MPa during the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the second press unit (60).
  12. An electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus (100) for fabricating a stack (S) comprising a first electrode (1), a second electrode (2), a first electrode section of a separator underlying the first electrode (1) and a second electrode section of the separator between the first and the second electrodes (1, 2), comprising: a stack table (10) configured for supporting the stack (S); a gripper (51) configured for fixing the stack (S); a first press unit (50) configured for heating and compressing the stack (S) fixed by the gripper (51), wherein the gripper (51) is in a form of a column or plate extending in a direction parallel to both of an upper plane defined by an upper surface of the stack (S) and a lower plane defined by a lower surface of the stack (S), and the gripper (51) presses a portion of both of the upper surface and the lower surface of the stack (S) to fix the stack (S), wherein the first press unit (50) includes a pair of pressing blocks configured for compressing opposing surfaces of the stack (S), wherein the pair of pressing blocks are moveable in directions towards each other and configured for compressing either one or both of the stack (S) and the gripper (51), characterized in that at least one of the pair of pressing blocks of the first press unit (50) presses the gripper (51) such that the gripper (51) presses the stack (S).
  13. A method for manufacturing an electrode assembly, comprising: supplying and stacking a first electrode (1), a separator, and a second electrode (2) to manufacture a stack (S) of the first and the second electrodes (1,2) with the separator disposed between the first and the second electrodes (1, 2); heating and pressing the stack (S) with a first press unit (50) while fixing the stack (S) using a gripper (51); and heating and pressing the stack (S) using a second press unit (60) after the step of heating and pressing the stack (S) with the first press unit (50), wherein the gripper (51) is in a form of a column or plate extending in a direction parallel to both of an upper plane defined by an upper surface of the stack (S) and a lower plane defined by a lower surface of the stack (S), and the gripper (51) presses a portion of both of the upper surface and the lower surface of the stack (S) to fix the stack (S), wherein the first press unit (50) includes a pair of pressing blocks configured for compressing opposing surfaces of the stack (S), wherein the pair of pressing blocks are moveable in directions towards each other and configured for compressing either one or both of the stack (S) and the gripper (51), and wherein at least one of the pair of pressing blocks of the first press unit (50) presses the gripper (51) such that the gripper (51) presses the stack (S).

Description

[Technical Field] This application claims priority from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0090592 filed on July 09, 2021, Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0090588 filed on July 09, 2021, Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0090589 filed on July 09, 2021. The present disclosure relates to electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus and methods. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus and methods for fixing an electrode and separator stack for an electrode assembly to prevent distortion during compression of the stack. [Background Art] Secondary batteries, unlike primary batteries, are rechargeable and have been widely researched and developed in recent years due to their small size and large capacity. As technology development and demand for mobile devices increase, the demand for secondary batteries as an energy source is rapidly increasing. The secondary battery is classified into a coin-type battery, a cylindrical battery, a prismatic battery, and a pouch-type battery according to a shape of a battery case. In a secondary battery, an electrode assembly mounted inside a battery case is a chargeable/dischargeable power generating element having a stacked structure of an electrode and a separator. The electrode assembly may be generally classified into a jelly-roll type in which a separator is interposed between a positive electrode and a negative electrode of a sheet type coated with an active material and wound, a stack type in which pluralities of positive and negative electrodes are sequentially stacked with a separator interposed therebetween, and a stack-and-folding type in which stacked unit cells are wound with a long-length separation film. In a process of manufacturing a stack-and-folding type electrode assembly in the related art, an electrode assembly was manufactured by heating and compressing a stack in which an electrode and a separator are stacked to bond the electrode and the separator. However, in the electrode assembly manufacturing process in the related art, the electrode is known to become distorted when the stack is compressed. To address this issue, the electrode and the separator are stacked by heating the separator, and the respective layers of the stack are stacked and bonded to each other at the same time by stacking and compressing each of the respective layers as they are added to the electrode. However, these benefits diminish for later stacked electrodes. The adhesive force of the first stacked electrode increases through a plurality of pressing processes, but the adhesive force relatively lower for later stacked electrodes and the least for the last stacked electrode due to the last stacked electrode being subjected to only one pressing process. That is, the adhesive force decreases in the stacking direction. Thus, there is a need to provide greater uniformity in the adhesive forces throughout the stack of the electrode assembly. KR 2020 0023854 and KR 2021 0074026 A relate to electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus and an electrode assembly manufacturing method SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE [Disclosure] [Technical Problem] The present disclosure provides electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus and an electrode assembly manufacturing methods, which press and fix an upper surface and a lower surface of a stack in which an electrode and a separator are stacked, and then heat and press the stack. The present disclosure provides electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus and an electrode assembly manufacturing methods, which secure uniformity of adhesive force of an electrode assembly through two pressing processes. [Technical Solution] The invention is defined in the set of claims. In accordance with claims 1 and 12, it is disclosed an electrode assembly manufacturing apparatus for fabricating a stack comprising a first electrode, a second electrode, a first electrode section of a separator underlying the first electrode and a second electrode section of a separator between the first and the second electrodes includes a stack table, a gripper, and a first press unit. The stack table is configured for supporting the stack. The gripper is configured for fixing the stack. The first press unit is configured for heating and compressing the stack fixed by the gripper. In some arrangements, in fixing the stack, the gripper may hold the stack in any one or any combination of a same position relative to the first press unit, a same orientation relative to the first press unit, and a same configuration. In some arrangements, in holding the stack in a same configuration, one or more layers of the stack, e.g., adjacent first and second electrodes, may be held in relative positions to each other. In some such arrangements as well as in other arrangements, in holding the stack in a same configuration, one or more of the surfaces of the stack pressed by the gripper, e.g., top and bottom surfaces of the stack, may be held in re