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KR-20260066396-A - BATTERY CELL AND BATTERY CELL MANUFACTURING METHODS

KR20260066396AKR 20260066396 AKR20260066396 AKR 20260066396AKR-20260066396-A

Abstract

According to the present disclosure, a battery manufacturing apparatus may be provided, comprising a moving part arranged to transport a battery cell including a cell tab with a barcode displayed thereon, and a recognition device arranged to recognize the barcode and positioned opposite to the movement path of the battery cell transported by the moving part, wherein the recognition device comprises a guide part arranged to prevent the cell tab from bending by spraying air toward the cell tab.

Inventors

  • 이건호
  • 김형권

Assignees

  • 주식회사 엘지에너지솔루션

Dates

Publication Date
20260512
Application Date
20241104

Claims (12)

  1. An alignment step of butting a first current collector plate electrically connected to an electrode assembly and a rivet terminal together; and A welding step of welding the above rivet terminal and the above first collector plate by ultrasonic welding; Includes, The above rivet terminal includes a terminal groove in which a portion of the surface facing the first current collector plate is recessed inward, and A battery cell manufacturing method in which the welding step is a step of butting a welding rod against a welding point of the first current collector plate positioned to correspond to the terminal groove.
  2. In Article 1, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the first width, which is the depth of the terminal groove, is equal to or smaller than the second width, which is the thickness of the first current collector plate.
  3. In Article 2, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the diameter of the terminal groove is larger than the diameter of the front end of the welding rod.
  4. In Paragraph 3, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the diameter of the terminal groove is equal to or greater than the size of the sum of the diameter of the tip of the welding rod and twice the second width.
  5. In Article 1, The above welding step is, A pressing step of pressing the first collector plate toward the terminal groove with the tip of the welding rod and A method for manufacturing a battery cell comprising a friction step of rotating or vibrating the welding rod to cause friction between the first collector plate and the rivet terminal.
  6. In Article 5, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the first current collector plate is flat before the above-mentioned pressurization step is performed.
  7. In Article 1, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the first current collector plate includes a protrusion that is partially bent and received in the terminal groove after the welding step.
  8. In Article 7, A method for manufacturing a battery cell in which the above-mentioned protrusion includes a shape corresponding to the above-mentioned terminal groove.
  9. An electrode assembly comprising an anode, a cathode, and a separator interposed between the anode and the cathode; A can accommodating the above electrode assembly; A rivet terminal electrically connected to the electrode assembly and having at least a portion accommodated in the can; and A first current collector plate electrically connected to the electrode assembly and the rivet terminal; Includes, The above rivet terminal includes a terminal groove in which a portion of the surface facing the first current collector plate is recessed inward, and The first width, which is the depth of the terminal groove, is equal to or smaller than the second width, which is the thickness of the first collector plate, and The above first collector plate is a battery cell comprising a protrusion that is at least partially bent and received in the terminal groove.
  10. In Article 9, The first current collector plate is a battery cell in which at least a portion of the protrusion is ultrasonically welded to the rivet terminal.
  11. In Article 9, The above-mentioned protrusion is a battery cell having a shape corresponding to the terminal groove.
  12. In Article 9, The above protrusion is a battery cell formed by bending the first collector plate during the ultrasonic welding process.

Description

Battery Cell and Battery Manufacturing Methods The present disclosure relates to a battery cell and a method for manufacturing a battery. Battery cells (secondary batteries) are rechargeable and dischargeable, so they are widely used in mobile devices such as digital cameras, mobile phones, and laptops. In particular, they are recently attracting attention as an energy source for electric vehicles and Energy Storage Systems (ESS). Battery cells can be classified according to the shape of the case into cylindrical battery cells or prismatic battery cells in which the electrode assembly is embedded in a cylindrical or prismatic metal can, and pouch-type batteries in which the electrode assembly is embedded in a pouch-type case made of a film sheet. Cylindrical battery cells include rivet terminals that serve to transmit current from the electrode assembly to the outside. During the manufacturing process of cylindrical battery cells, a welding process is performed between the current collector plate and the rivet terminals to electrically connect the rivet terminals and the current collector plate. Meanwhile, ultrasonic welding may be applied in the process of welding current collector plates and rivet terminals. During this process, burrs—foreign substances formed by the deformation of a portion of the current collector plate due to friction between the welding rod and the plate—may form on the plate where the welding rod makes contact. These burrs can occur in a small, thin, thread-like form and are highly likely to detach from the current collector plate. If the burrs detach from the current collector plate and remain inside the battery cell, it may cause defects in the battery cell. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a cross-section of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a welding step during the manufacturing process of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method for manufacturing a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the process of welding a current collector plate and a rivet terminal during the manufacturing process of a conventional battery cell. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the process of welding a first current collector plate and a rivet terminal during the manufacturing process of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of A in Figure 5. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the process of welding a first current collector plate and a rivet terminal during the manufacturing process of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of B in Figure 7. FIG. 9(a) is an enlarged photograph of one side of a current collector plate welded to a rivet terminal of a conventional battery cell, and FIG. 9(b) is an enlarged photograph of one side of a current collector plate welded to a rivet terminal of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 (a) is a three-dimensional photograph showing the height of one side of a current collector plate welded to a rivet terminal of a conventional battery cell, distinguished by color, and FIG. 10 (b) is a three-dimensional photograph showing the height of one side of a current collector plate welded to a rivet terminal of a battery cell according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, distinguished by color. In describing the embodiments of the present disclosure, the terms used have been selected to be as widely used as possible, taking into account their functions within the present disclosure; however, these terms may vary depending on the intent of those skilled in the art, case law, the emergence of new technologies, etc. Additionally, in specific cases, terms may be selected at the applicant's discretion, and in such cases, their meanings may be described in detail in the relevant explanatory section. Therefore, the terms used in the present disclosure are not merely names, but may be defined based on their meanings and the overall content of the present disclosure. The suffix "part" for components used in this specification is assigned or used interchangeably solely for the sake of ease of drafting the specification and may not have a distinct meaning or role in itself. Furthermore, in describing the embodiments included in this disclosure, if it is determined that a detailed description of related prior art could obscure the essence of the embodiments included in this disclosure, such detailed description may be omitted. Additionally, the attached drawings are intended only to facilitate understanding of the embodiments included in this disclosure, and the technical concept of this disclosure is not limited by the attached