Negative grid for battery

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9577266-B2
Application number	US-52959908-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 29, 2008
Priority date	Mar 2, 2007
Publication date	Feb 21, 2017
Grant date	Feb 21, 2017

Abstract

A method for producing a negative grid for a battery which includes providing a strip of battery grid material and performing a punching operation on the battery grid material to remove material and form a grid. The punching operation produces a negative battery grid having a plurality of grid wires bounded by a frame. The battery grid includes a top frame member. A first side frame member is coupled to the top frame member at a first end thereof. A second side frame member is coupled to the top frame member at a second end thereof. A bottom frame member is spaced apart from the top frame member and coupled to the first side frame member and the second side frame member. The negative grid does not include exposed wire ends that may puncture a polymeric separator when the negative grid is provided within the separator.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for producing a negative grid for a battery comprising:
providing a strip of battery grid material;
performing a punching operation on the battery grid material to remove material and form the negative battery grid;
whereby the negative battery grid has a plurality of grid wires joined at a plurality of nodes and formed by the punching operation into a uniform pattern of grid wires bounded by a frame comprising:
a top frame member;
a first side frame member coupled to the top frame member at a first end thereof;
a second side frame member coupled to the top frame member at a second end thereof;
a bottom frame member spaced apart from the top frame member and coupled to the first side frame member and the second side frame member;

wherein each of the grid wires coupled to the top frame member is joined to the top frame member at an intersection point having a conductivity enhancing feature configured to aid conductivity between the plurality of grid wires and the frame;
wherein the conductivity enhancing feature of each grid wire is formed by a gradual widening of grid wire beginning from a node immediately adjacent to the top frame member toward the intersection point wherein the remainder of the grid wire not having a conductivity enhancing feature has a substantially constant thickness;
and
wherein the negative grid is free of exposed wire ends for preventing puncturing of a polymeric separator when the negative grid is provided within the separator.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the punching operation is a progressive punching operation.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the battery grid material is a continuously cast lead alloy strip that is processed to modify at least one of the thickness and grain structure of the continuously cast lead alloy strip.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the negative battery grid has a thickness in the range of about 0.010 to 0.050 inches.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein a series of interconnected battery grids are formed by punching the grid material out of the continuously cast lead alloy strip.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of grid wires are arranged in a honeycomb shape.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the honeycomb shape comprises regular hexagons.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein at least one of the top frame member, first side frame member, second side frame member, and bottom frame member is provided with a feature which compensates for grid growth during use of the grid.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of grid wires comprise vertical grid wires spanning from the top frame member to the bottom frame member and horizontal grid wires perpendicular to the vertical grid wires.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the battery grid is subjected to a coining step to deform at least one of the plurality of grid wires and the plurality of nodes.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein a grid wire from the plurality of grid wires is deformed to produce a cross-section that has a shape selected from a group consisting of an octagon shape, a diamond shape, a rhomboid shape, a hexagon shape, and an oval shape.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the negative battery grid is coated with a lead alloy.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the negative battery grid is formed into a battery plate further comprising using a fixed orifice paster to coat the negative battery grid with an active material.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the battery grid material has a composition of 0.05 to 0.50 percent calcium, 0.001 to 2.5 percent antimony, 0.01 to 2.0 percent tin, 0.001 to 0.1 percent copper, 0.001 to 0.25 percent arsenic, 0.01 to 0.05 percent bismuth, 0.003 to 0.01 percent silver, and a balance of lead.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the battery grid material has a composition that comprises 0.05 to 0.15 percent calcium, less than 0.002 percent antimony, greater than 0.5 percent tin, less than 0.005 percent copper, less than 0.002 percent arsenic, less than 0.02 percent bismuth, less than 0.005 percent silver, and a balance of lead.

16. A negative battery grid comprising:
a frame comprising a top element, a bottom element, a first side element, and a second side element;
a plurality of stamped grid wires forming a uniform pattern of wires provided within the frame and defining a plurality of open areas, wherein the plurality of grid wires join at a plurality of nodes, wherein each of the grid wires coupled to the top frame element is joined to the top frame element at an intersection point having a conductivity enhancing feature configured to aid conductivity between the plurality of grid wires and the frame, wherein the conductivity enhancing feature is formed by a gradual widening of grid wire beginning from each node immediately adjacent to the top frame element toward the intersection point and wherein a remainder of the grid wire not having a conductivity enhancing feature has a substantially constant thickness; and
a current collection lug extending from the top element in a first direction.

17. The negative battery grid of claim 16 , wherein the intersection points have a radius between the frame element and the grid wire to enhance the electrical conductivity between the frame element and the plurality of grid wires.

18. The negative battery grid of claim 16 , further comprising at least one growth reduction feature provided in the battery grid that is configured to compensate for grid growth during use.

19. The negative battery grid of claim 16 , wherein the negative battery grid has an unpasted thickness ranging from 0.010 to 0.021 inches.

20. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein the plurality of grid wires are arranged in a regular pattern across the grid consisting of a diamond shape which is either vertically or horizontally elongated.

21. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein at least one of the top frame element, first side frame element, second side frame element, and bottom frame element is provided with a feature which compensates for grid growth during use of the grid.

22. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein the negative battery grid is coated with a lead alloy.

23. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein the battery grid material has a composition of 0.05 to 0.50 percent calcium, 0.001 to 2.5 percent antimony, 0.01 to 2.0 percent tin, 0.001 to 0.1 percent copper, 0.001 to 0.25 percent arsenic, 0.01 to 0.05 percent bismuth, 0.003 to 0.01 percent silver, and a balance of lead.

24. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein the battery grid material has a composition that comprises 0.05 to 0.15 percent calcium, less than 0.002 percent antimony, greater than 0.5 percent tin, less than 0.005 percent copper, less than 0.002 percent arsenic, less than 0.02 percent bismuth, less than 0.005 percent silver, and a balance of lead.

25. The negative battery grid of claim 16 wherein the nodes immediately adjacent to one or more of the first, second, and bottom frame elements are provided with an additional conductivity enhancing feature, and wherein the additional conductivity enhancing feature is formed by a gradual widening of grid wire beginning from each node immediately adjacent to the one or more frame elements toward an intersection point with the one or more frame elements.

26. A punched negative battery grid comprising:
a frame having f

Assignees

• Troxel Jeffrey L
• Schaeffer Charles J
• Andersen Glenn W
• Lacroix Michael E
• Kao Wen-Hong
• Johnson Controls Tech Co

Inventors

• Troxel Jeffrey L
• Schaeffer Charles J
• Andersen Glenn W
• Lacroix Michael E
• Kao Wen-Hong

Classifications

• H01M4/667

  in the form of layers, e.g. coatings · CPC title

• Y10T29/49108

  Electric battery cell making · CPC title

• H01M4/73 Primary

  for lead-acid accumulators, e.g. frame plates · CPC title

• H01M4/685 Primary

  Lead alloys · CPC title

• H01M4/04

  Processes of manufacture in general · CPC title