CH709065A2 - Accumulator nonconductive structured surface. - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates, as a button cell, to an accumulator comprising an anode casing (12), an anode (14) located inside the anode casing, a cathode casing (13) secured to the anode casing , a seal (16) sealing the cathode casing to the anode casing, a cathode (15) located inside the cathode casing between the anode and the cathode casing, and a membrane (17) between the anode and the cathode. The battery is characterized in that an outer surface of said battery (21, 22, 23) comprises at least one marking 18, electrically insulating. The invention also relates to an electrical apparatus comprising a housing with a housing for placing an accumulator according to the invention.

Description

The present invention relates to a battery or accumulator comprising an anode casing, an anode located inside the anode casing, a cathode casing secured to the anode casing, a seal sealing the casing cathode to the anode casing, a cathode located inside the cathode casing between the anode and the cathode casing, and a membrane between the anode and the cathode.

PRIOR ART

There is known an accumulator of electrical energy as batteries said buttons to power electrical devices such as watches or calculators visible in FIG. 1. These cells 1 comprise an anode casing 2, an anode 4 located inside the anode casing, a cathode casing 3 secured to the anode casing 2, a seal 6 sealing the cathode casing to the casing anode, a cathode 5 located inside the cathode casing between the anode and the cathode casing, and a membrane 7 between the anode and the cathode.

To distinguish the different types of button cells, it is expected that markings 8 are made on one of the outer surfaces of the battery that is to say on the surface of the cathode housing or on that of the housing anode.

These markings can be made in several different ways. One way is to use an ink or paint that is just put on one of the surface of the pile. This method has the advantage of being simple and of being easily adaptable. Indeed, it is easy to go from marking for a first type of battery to marking for a second type of battery.

However, a first disadvantage of this solution is to ensure good adhesion of the layer on the battery case. Another disadvantage is that the paint or ink on the stack is easily erasable or scratchable. Indeed, these batteries are handled without care, can fall or undergo a mechanical wear leading to the appearance of scratches or deformations which deteriorate the ink or the painting. In case of deterioration of the deposited layer, it is possible that ink or paint residues are detached from the surface of the battery and pollute the electrical contact or disrupt the normal operation of the device.

Another solution is to make a marking 8b, 8c by stamping. This process consists of deforming plastically using a press equipped with a punch, the anode casing or more traditionally the cathode casing. The stamping may result in a marking 8b which will be visible on the other side of the case or simply a marking 8c by crushing the material. However, this method has the disadvantage of resulting in more complex management. Indeed, for each marking, it is necessary to have a different punch.

Therefore, this involves a complex process of manufacturing the stack in which the punch must be changed at each change of marking or in which series of stacks with one or more specific markings are made successively.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an electric energy accumulator as an electric battery that overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art by providing a battery that can receive a simple and durable marking.

For this purpose, the invention relates to a battery or accumulator comprising an anode casing, an anode located inside the anode casing, a cathode casing secured to the anode casing, a sealing gasket sealing the cathode casing to the anode casing, a cathode located inside the cathode casing between the anode and the cathode casing, and a membrane between the anode and the cathode, the anode casing and the The cathode casings together have, respectively, a first outer surface and a second outer surface, a third outer surface intersecting with these first and second surfaces and serving as the edge of the battery, the battery being characterized in that an outer surface of said accumulator comprises at least one marking made by local heating of the material, said marking being electrically insulating.

In a first advantageous embodiment, said local heating of the material forming the marking removes material.

In a second advantageous embodiment, said local heating of the material forming the marking is performed by laser.

In a third advantageous embodiment, said marking extends over at least one of the outer faces of the accumulator.

In a fourth advantageous embodiment of the invention, said local heating of the material by laser is carried out so that the marking has a coloration in contrast with the material of the surface on which said marking is applied.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the marking is a decorative image.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the marking is an anti-counterfeiting device.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the anti-counterfeiting device comprises a combination of several recesses with different dimensions of the surface forming a single arrangement.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the anti-counterfeiting device comprises a combination of several recesses arranged parallel to each other, the spacing between two recesses and the width of said recesses being heterogeneous to form an arrangement. unique.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the battery further comprises at least one electrically conductive marking.

The invention also relates to an electronic apparatus comprising a closed housing in which the electronic module is located, said housing comprising a housing closed by a trapdoor in which an accumulator for electrically powering the electronic module can be arranged, characterized in that the accumulator is an accumulator according to one of the preceding claims.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the hatch is made of a transparent material to allow to see the marking of said accumulator.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing of the accumulator comprises a decoration and in that the marking of the accumulator is made so that said decoration and said marking combine to form an aesthetic assembly. .

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing comprises connectors to obtain an electrical connection between said accumulator and said electronic module and in that said marking said accumulator is made not to disturb said electrical connection.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Other features and advantages of the battery according to the present invention will appear more clearly on reading the detailed description of embodiments of the invention given solely by way of non-limiting examples and illustrated by the accompanying drawings in which: : <tb> fig. 1 <SEP> is a schematic sectional view of a battery according to the prior art; <tb> fig. 2 <SEP> is a schematic sectional view of a battery according to the invention; <tb> fig. 3 <SEP> is a perspective view of a first application of the battery according to the invention; <tb> fig. 4 <SEP> is a view of a watchcase bottom having a marking according to the first application of the battery according to the invention; <tb> fig. <SEP> is a perspective view of a second application of the battery according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 2 represents an electric energy storage device 10 such as a battery according to the invention, this battery can be rechargeable or not. Such a battery 10 is, for example, of the button type and comprises an anode casing 12 with an anode 14 located inside. The cell further includes a cathode casing 13 secured to the anode casing 12. To seal between the anode casing 12 and the cathode casing 13, a seal 16 sealing the cathode casing 13 to the casing anode 12 is used.

A cathode 15 is located inside the cathode casing 13 between the anode 14 and the cathode casing 13. A membrane 17 is arranged to be located between the anode 14 and the cathode 15. The casing anode 12 has a first outer surface 21 while the cathode casing 13 has a second outer surface 22. For example, the first outer surface 21 and the second outer surface 22 are parallel to each other. The stack 10 further comprises a third outer surface 23 secant with these first 21 and second 22 surfaces; this third surface 23 represents the edge of the cell 10 and is composed of a portion of the anode casing 12 and a portion of the cathode casing 13. However, the first outer surface 21 and the second outer surface 22 may not be parallel and be curved.

This battery 10 is intended to be placed in an electronic device 100 such as a watch or a calculator. This electronic apparatus 100 comprises a housing 101 in which an electronic module is arranged. This electronic module is powered by said battery 10. The housing 101 is made so as to have, in its bottom 102, a housing 103 in which the battery 10 is placed to be electrically connected to the electronic module. This housing 103 is closed by a battery door 104. In general, when the battery 10 is arranged in its housing 103, a surface becomes visible to the user. However, it is possible for the electronic device 100 to be able to see several surfaces of the battery 10. The contact or electrical connection is made by the surface opposite to the surface visible to the user, generally the second outer surface 22 is that is, the anode, and the portion of the cathode casing of the third outer surface 23 serving as the edge of the cell 10 via contactors which are generally in the form of resilient metal blades.

Advantageously according to the invention, the battery has a marking 18. This marking 18 is achieved by local heating of the material. In a first embodiment, local heating of the material causes a removal of material, at one of the surfaces of the stack. This removal of material is carried out by laser etching, that is to say that a laser beam is pointed at a desired area. The material is then melted and vaporized by the laser. This use of laser engraving has the advantage of allowing a simpler battery marking process since only the programming of the laser changes between one marking 18 and another. Moreover, this method makes it possible to have an engraving depth between 10 and 200 nm, impossible to have by stamping. The laser engraving also allows a very good adhesion of the marking since it is integrated with the material of the case.

Preferably, the marking 18 is made so as to be electrically nonconductive or insulating. For this, the laser etching is performed under an oxygen atmosphere so that the oxygen and the etched material react to cause oxidation of the etched surface. This oxidation causes a local increase in the resistance and therefore a less good circulation of the current.

This marking 18 electrically non-conductive or insulating may extend to the first outer surface 21, the second surface 22 or the third outer surface 23 provided not to interfere with the electrical contact. Of course, this marking may extend over the first outer surface 21 and the second surface 22 and the third outer surface 23 as long as the electrical contact with the contactors of the electronic device 100 is not broken.

The advantage of having a non-conductive marking 18 allows for example to avoid isolating certain parts of the printed circuit of the electronic device 100 powered by the battery 10, as test points which must be accessible when the battery 10 is not present, but currently must be isolated so as not to risk a bad contact when the battery 10 is inserted. In addition, this avoids insulating parts of internal mechanical parts of the electronic device 100, or movement in the case of a watch application, which could come into contact with the battery 10.

Another advantage is that it can act as a key. When changing batteries 10, the user may be wrong and put the battery in the wrong direction. In this case, there is a risk of damaging current-sensitive electrical components. Usually, there is provided a protective element such as a diode to prevent such problems, this diode does not prevent the current from circulating in the opposite direction if the battery 10 is mounted upside down, it serves just to prevent damage. With the marking 8 according to the invention, it is possible that the face visible by the user is marked with a non-conductive marking 8 so that if the battery 10 is mounted upside down, the spring blade used to make electrical contact is in contact with this marking 8 nonconductive, the current can not circulate.

The advantage of having a marking 18 having a black color is to have a contrast between the material of the battery 10 that is to say the anode casing 12 and / or the cathode casing 13 and said marking 18. This contrast then allows said marking 18 to come out and attract attention.

In a first application, these markings 18 are used to make aesthetic figures 181 or decorative images as visible in FIG. 3. In this context, the aesthetic figure or figures 181 are made on the surface (s) of the stack visible (s) by the user when the stack 10 is in its housing 103. These aesthetic figures 181 can be used to achieve easily limited editions.

In addition, this or these aesthetic figures 181 may be integrated into a larger aesthetic assembly as shown in FIG. 4. It becomes conceivable to have the housing 101 of the apparatus 100 which comprises the stack 10 having a decoration 105 and that the stack 10 is an element of this decoration 105. For this, the marking 18 of the stack 10 is made to cooperate. with the decoration 105 of the housing 101 and form an aesthetic assembly 106. For example, if the housing 101 has a decoration consisting of stars forming a specific constellation (not shown), the marking 18 of the stack 10 can be in the form of one or more stars arranged so that said constellation is perfectly represented once the stack 10 in its housing 103. Similarly, it can be provided that a logo such as that related to the famous secret agent 007® is achieved: the drawing the barrel of a gun being the decoration 105 of the housing 101 while the character constitutes the marking 18.

On the other hand, the aesthetic figure 181 may be simply the logo of the manufacturer or indications on the characteristics of the battery 10 as its type or the voltage / current it delivers. In this case, the marking 18 may be colorless so as not to be too visible, especially if it is associated with another marking 18 acting as an aesthetic figure 181. In this application, the aesthetic figure 181 may comprise a network of diffraction 180 to improve its visual.

This first application is associated with the advantageous solution of having a trapdoor 104 of battery 10 made of a transparent material. This transparency allows the user to see the markings 18 of the stack 10 when he wishes, and not only when changing the stack 10.

In a second application, the mark or labels 18 are used for anti-counterfeiting use. This anti-counterfeiting marking can take various forms.

A first form consists in producing a serial number. A second form of anti-counterfeiting marking 18 consists of a specific structuring such as a bar code 182 as visible in FIG. 5. Such a bar code 182 may be two-dimensional, that is to say with laser engraving, it is conceivable to make a series of recesses 182a more or less deep, more or less wide and more or less long, for example form a square. This specific combination is preferably carried out in a colorless marking to be the least conspicuous possible. This bar code 182 can then be scanned to verify the authenticity of the stack 10.

A conventional bar code 182 composed of a plurality of parallel recesses 182a, of the same depth but with different widths and spacings may be etched.

It will be understood that various modifications and / or improvements and / or combinations obvious to those skilled in the art can be made to the various embodiments of the invention described above without departing from the scope of the invention defined by the appended claims.

Of course, it may be provided that the marking or markings are electrically conductive.

Claims (14)

An electric energy accumulator (10) comprising an anode casing (12), an anode (14) located inside the anode casing, a cathode casing (13) secured to the anode casing, a seal (16) sealing the cathode casing to the anode casing, a cathode (15) located inside the cathode casing between the anode and the cathode casing, and a membrane (17) between the cathode casing anode and the cathode, the anode casing (12) and the cathode casing (13) secured together have, respectively, a first outer surface (21) and a second outer surface (22), a third outer surface (23), ) being secant with these first and second surfaces and acting as a slice of said accumulator, said accumulator being characterized in that one of the outer surfaces of said accumulator (21, 22, 23) comprises at least one marking (18) produced by local heating of the material, said marking being electrically insulating. 2. Accumulator according to claim 1, characterized in that said local heating of the material forming the marking (18) removes material. 3. Accumulator according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that said local heating of the material forming the marking (18) is performed by laser. 4. Accumulator according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said marking (18) extends over at least one of the outer faces of said accumulator. 5. Accumulator according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that said local heating of the material by laser is carried out so that the marking (18) has a coloration in contrast with the material of the surface on which said marking is applied. 6. Accumulator according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the marking (18) is a decorative image (181). 7. Accumulator according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the marking (18) is an anti-counterfeiting device (182). 8. Accumulator according to claim 7, characterized in that the anti-counterfeiting device (182) comprises a combination of several recesses (182a) with different dimensions of the surface forming a single arrangement. 9. Accumulator according to claim 7, characterized in that the anti-counterfeiting device (182) comprises a combination of several recesses (182a) arranged parallel to each other, the spacing between two recesses and the width of said recesses being heterogeneous for form a unique arrangement. 10. Accumulator according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it further comprises at least one electrically conductive marking. An electronic apparatus (100) comprising a closed housing (101) in which an electronic module is located, said housing comprising a housing (103) closed by a hatch (104) in which an electric energy accumulator for electrically powering the module electronics can be arranged, characterized in that said accumulator is an accumulator (10) according to one of the preceding claims. 12. Electronic device according to claim 11, characterized in that the hatch (104) is made of a transparent material to allow to see the marking (18) of said accumulator. Electronic device according to claim 11, characterized in that the housing of the accumulator comprises a decoration (105) and in that the marking (18) of said accumulator is made so that said decoration (105) and said marking ( 18) combine to form an aesthetic assembly (106). 14. Electronic device according to claim 11, characterized in that the housing (101) comprises connectors to obtain an electrical connection between said accumulator and said electronic module and that said marking (8) said accumulator is made not to disturb said electrical connection.