Method for manufacturing electrode sheets and apparatus therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9705150-B2
Application number	US-201414307613-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 18, 2014
Priority date	Sep 2, 2008
Publication date	Jul 11, 2017
Grant date	Jul 11, 2017

Abstract

According to the method for manufacturing electrode sheets, in a first cutting step, an original sheet, including a belt-shaped metal foil and an electrode material coated thereon in a lengthwise direction to form a plurality of coated portions spaced at a predetermined gap, is cut at a location between the coated portions. In a pressing step, the original sheet strips having been cut in the first cutting step are pressed. In this case, the original sheet strips that are pressed by the rolling device are independent from each other. Therefore, the effect produced in rolling of the coated portions remains within each of the original sheet strips. In addition, distortions occurring in the original sheet strips can be prevented from affecting each other and the occurrence of wrinkles can be inhibited.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus, comprising:
a feed reel configured to be wound with an original sheet comprising a belt-shaped metal foil and a plurality of coated portions coated on the belt-shaped metal foil with an electrode material in a lengthwise direction and formed to have a predetermined width with a predetermined uncoated gap;
a conveying mechanism configured to convey the original sheet from the feed reel;
a first cutting device arranged in a conveying path of the conveying mechanism, and having a plurality of slitters configured to cut the original sheet into original sheet strips in the lengthwise direction along cutting lines set on the uncoated gaps;
a rolling device arranged downstream of the first cutting device in a conveying path of the conveying mechanism and configured to press the original sheet strips having been cut by the first cutting device; and
a second cutting device arranged downstream of the rolling device in the conveying path and having a plurality of slitters configured to cut the original sheet strips in the lengthwise direction along cutting lines set on the coated portions.

2. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a position adjusting mechanism configured to adjust a widthwise position of the original sheet supplied to the first cutting device arranged upstream of the first cutting device in the conveying path.

3. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the rolling device has a pair of rolls, and the rolling device presses the original sheet strips by sandwiching the original sheet strips between the pair of rolls, the original sheet strips having been cut by the first cutting device and arranged side by side so as to be spaced from each other at a gap in an axial direction of the rolls.

4. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a gap adjusting device arranged in the conveying path between the first cutting device and the rolling device, and configured to widen the gap between the plurality of original sheet strips having been cut by the first cutting device.

5. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a speed adjusting mechanism arranged in the conveying path between the first cutting device and the rolling device and configured to adjust the speed of the plurality of original sheet strips having been cut by the first cutting device, so that the speed of the original sheet strips supplied to the rolling device is adjusted by the speed adjusting mechanism.

6. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a distortion correcting device arranged between the rolling device and the second cutting device in the conveying path.

7. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the distortion correcting device has a correction roller for catching the original sheet strips, and a section of each correction roller that supports uncoated portions of the original sheet strips is thicker than a section thereof that supports the coated portions of the original sheet strips.

8. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the section of the correction roller that supports the uncoated portions at both widthwise ends of each of the original sheet strips is replaceable.

9. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a position adjusting mechanism arranged upstream of the second cutting device in the conveying path and configured to adjust the widthwise positions of the original sheet strips supplied to the second cutting device.

10. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a mechanism A configured to guide adjacent sheet strips separately to an upper conveying path and a lower conveying path, and to adjust respective positions of the sheet strips in the upper and lower conveying paths; and
a mechanism B configured to arrange the sheet strips, the positions of which are adjusted in the upper and lower conveying paths by the mechanism A, side by side so as to be spaced from each other widthwise, and to guide the sheet strips to a single conveying path to convey the sheet strips.

11. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10 , comprising a guide roller configured to convey the sheet strips arranged side by side and spaced from each other widthwise, the guide roller comprising:
a rotary shaft rotatably supported by bearings;
a plurality of tendency drive roller bearings mounted on the rotary shaft so as to be spaced from each other and having a slip resistance larger than that of the bearings; and
a plurality of shells mounted on the rotary shaft via the tendency drive roller bearings, and
the guide roller conveying the sheet strips by the plurality of shells.

12. The electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10 , further comprising a winding device having a friction shaft and a plurality of winding reels disposed on the friction shaft and spaced lengthwise at a gap corresponding to the gap of the plurality of sheet strips, the friction shaft capable of adjusting a torque acting upon the winding reels,
the winding device being capable of winding up the plurality of sheet strips by the winding reels disposed on the friction shaft.

13. An apparatus for manufacturing a battery having a wound electrode body including electrode sheets and belt-shaped separators being laminated and wound together, comprising, as an apparatus for manufacturing the electrode sheets, the electrode sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 .

Assignees

• Ito Tsuyoshi
• Hayashi Akiji
• Ishida Hiroki
• Shibata Ichiro
• Omori Keisuke
• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ito Tsuyoshi
• Hayashi Akiji
• Ishida Hiroki
• Shibata Ichiro
• Omori Keisuke

Classifications

• H01M10/0525

  Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries · CPC title

• H01M4/0435

  Rolling or calendering · CPC title

• Y10T29/49108

  Electric battery cell making · CPC title

• H01M10/345

  Gastight metal hydride accumulators · CPC title

• H01M10/0587

  of accumulators having only wound construction elements, i.e. wound positive electrodes, wound negative electrodes and wound separators · CPC title