GB1582979A

GB1582979A - Electric batteries

Info

Publication number: GB1582979A
Application number: GB30911/77A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Celaya Emparanza y Galdos SA CEGASA
Current assignee: Celaya Emparanza y Galdos SA CEGASA
Priority date: 1976-07-24
Filing date: 1977-07-22
Publication date: 1981-01-21
Also published as: BE857049A; DE2733068A1; IT1081158B; FR2359514A1; ES450123A1; FR2359514B1

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO ELECTRIC BATTERIES (71) We, CELAYA, EMPARANZA Y GALDOS, S.A. (CEGASA), a Spanish Company of Artapadura, 11 Vitoria, Spain do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following state ment The present invention relates to electric batteries.

Alkaline batteries with air depolarisation are known and are often called zinc/air batteries.

Such batteries are commonly 4.5 volts, and have internal positive and negative terminals which are connected in parallel with the negative connectors of the two half-cells so as to form a series connection between the connected negative connectors and the positive connectors. Such batteries are very costly for two main reasons, namely: 1. They are difficult to manipulate for connection, and accordingly mechanization of the connection procedure is difficult.

2. There is a risk of short circuiting the connectors and it is necessary to handle them with very great care during the assembly British Patent Application No. 30691/77 (Serial No. 1582978) describes an electric battery in which the cells are assembled in the vertical position in a box which holds three cells in its interior. A group of connectors are connected together within the lower part of the box, and the remaining connectors are connected together within the upper part of the box, the two groups of terminals then being connected to respective terminal members.

With this arrangement it is necessary to place the central cell in the opposite direction with respect to the two outer cells to facilitate the connections.

According to the present invention there is provided an electric battery comprising two or more cells, each cell having at least one negative and one positive connector, the cells all being mounted in a housing such that all the connectors extend from one end of the housing, and a printed circuit board arranged at said one end of the housing, all of the connectors being connected to said printed circuit board.

A battery of the invention can be assembled without placing cells in opposite directions.

Thus, three cells can be fitted in the same direction, without the necessity of placing the central one in a direction which is opposite to the others, so as to facilitate connecting it up.

Once this has been done, by means of the printed circuit board, one obtains a battery which is secure in its connections and which is simple to assemble.

Embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: - Figure 1 shows schematically a perspective view of three cells mounted in a battery housing, Figure 2 shows a perspective view of an assembled battery with parts broken away, including the arrangement of cells shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a section of an end member for the battery, Figure 3' shows a plan view of the end member of Figure 3, Figure 4 shows schematically an embodiment of a printed circuit board for an electric battery, Figure 4' shows a plan view of the printed circuit board of Figure 4, and Figure 4" shows schematically a plan view of a further embodiment of a printed circuit board for an electric battery.

Figure 1 shows an arrangement of three cells 1 within a plastics material battery housing 2. It will be seen that the housing 2, which is preferably tubular, is divided into three longitudinally extending compartments each of which accommodates a respective cell 1. It will be seen that each cell 1 is formed from two negative half-cells, each having a respective negative terminal connector extending therefrom, which sandwich and grip a positive mass therebetween, the positive mass likewise having a positive terminal connector extending therefrom. Each cell 1 is constructed so that the three connectors thereof all extend from at or near the same end thereof.

In the arrangement illustrated in Figure 1 the cells 1 are mounted in their respective compartments in the housing 2 so that the cells 1 are all in the same direction that is, as shown, so that all of the connectors are at the upper end of the housing. Once the cells 1 have been mounted within the housing 2 the necessary electrical connections can be made by way of a printed circuit board as illustrated in Figure 4.

It will be seen that the printed circuit board shown in Figure 4" is a substantially conventional printed circuit board except that it has been divided longitudinally into two half boards 3. The printed circuit board 3,3 is printed with a circuit arranged to connect the connectors of the cells as required, for example, to connect the cells in series to provide a negative and a positive battery terminal. The circuit board is divided into two halves along a serrated longitudinal dividing line. Thus, the two halves of the board can be arranged to interlock. Thus, when the cells 1 are mounted the two halves of the circuit board 3,3 are interlocked to thereby grip the cell connectors therebetween. It will be appreciated that the interlocking of the circuit board will serve both to grip the connectors and to connect them to the printed circuit. However, if required, additional means may also be employed to secure the two half boards together. For example, the connectors may be bent over in an appropriate direction and soldered to the printed circuit board 3,3. Metal plates forming the positive terminal 5 and the negative terminal 6 of the battery can then or simultaneously, be soldered to the circuit board 3,3 at the appropriate positions. It will be clear from the circuit arrangement shown on Figure 4" that this arrangement provides a series connection for the cells. For example, it will be seen that the arrangement includes parallel conducting paths for connecting together the negative connectors of the two half-cells of an individual cell.

In an embodiment of the invention the connectors are connected by way of the printed circuit board illustrated in Figures 4 and 4'.

This circuit board 3 is in one piece and has holes extending through the conducting paths thereof. In this embodiment, when the cells 1 have been mounted in the housing 2 so that the connectors thereof extend substantially longitudinally upwardly as indicated in Figure 1, the circuit board 3 is positioned above the cells so that the connectors pass through the holes therein. The connectors are then bent over and are soldered to the board 3 as indicated at 7 in Figure 2. Each connector is bent in an appropriate direction so that there is no danger of short circuits. The plates forming the positive and negative terminals 5 and 6 are then, or simultaneously, soldered to the appropriate points on the printed circuit board 3.

In each embodiment so far described the soldered joints 7 are preferably protected by way of a suitable substance such as, varnish, pitch or paraffin wax.

In each embodiment described above, the housing 2 is preferably provided with a base member before the cells are mounted therein.

This base member may be integrally formed with the housing or secured thereto by any suitable means. Once the cells have been mounted in the housing and connected as described above the upper end of the housing 2 is closed.

A suitable top closure member 4 is shown in Figures 3 and 3'. The top closure member 4 is substantially planar and has two substantially parallel transverse slots formed therein. The periphery of the closure member 4 corresponds to the upper periphery of the housing 2. The top closure member 4 is engaged on the upper periphery of the housing 2 so that the plates 5 and 6 extend through the slots therein. The closure member 4 is then secured to the housing 2, for example, by applying an adhesive around all of its periphery or by ultrasonic welding.

The slots through which the plates 5 and 6 pass allow passage of air through the closure member 4 into the battery housing 2 for the depolarisation of the battery.

Preferably, once the top closure member 4 has been secured, the negative terminal 6 of the battery is bent over to extend along the member 4. The completed battery is shown in Figure 2.

If required, a guarantee seal may be affixed to the top closure member 4 of the completed battery so as to prevent use of the battery before it is sold.

In the embodiments illustrated and described above, the battery housing 2, the partitions defining the compartments therein, and the top and base closure members are all made of plastics material. However, the housing and the members thereof can be made of any suitable material. For example, the housing may be a known cardboard housing and the closure members may be of the known types suitable for use with cardboard housings.

In the embodiments illustrated and described above the three connectors of each cell all extend from the same end thereof. However, where the cells are constructed such that the central positive mass of each cell 1 is in the opposite direction to the negative half-cells 1', the positive connector is at the opposite end of the cell to the negative connectors. In this case, the cells are all mounted in the housing to extend in the same direction, for example, with all the positive connectors at or near the upper end of the housing and all the negative connectors at or near the lower end of the housing.

The negative connectors are made of sufficient length so that when the cells have been introduced into the housing the negative connectors extend to the upper end of the housing for connection to the printed circuit board.

The batteries described herein are easy to assemble, and have secure soldered connections which can be suitably protected. Although the invention is particularly appropriate for batteries comprising alkaline cells of the tablet type the invention is, of course, useful for bat teries with different cells. The invention is applicable whether the cells are connected in series or in parallel.

Although in the embodiments described above three cells are used any number of cells can be chosen as required. Additionally, the material, shape and method of assembly of the housing and/or the individual cells can be varied as required.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. An electric battery comprising two or more cells, each cell having at least one negative and one positive connector, the cells all being mounted in a housing such that all the connectors extend from one end of the housing, and a printed circuit board arranged at said one end of the housing, all of the connectors being connected to said printed circuit board.

2. An electric battery as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connectors extend through holes in the printed circuit board.

3. An electric battery as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printed circuit board has two engaging halves, the engaging halves gripping the connectors.

4 An electric battery as claimed in any pre ceding claim, wherein the connectors are soldered to the printed circuit board.

5. An electric battery as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein said negative and positive connectors extend from substantially opposite ends of said cells, either said positive or said negative connectors being of sufficient length to enable the connectors to be connected to said printed circuit board.

6. An electric battery as claimed in claim 5, wherein the negative connectors are of sufficient length to enable them to be connected to said printed circuit board.

7. An electric battery as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each cell has two negative connectors and one positive connector.

8. An electric battery as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the printed circuit board is printed with a circuit arranged to connect the connectors such that the cells are connected in series.

9. An electric battery substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. teries with different cells. The invention is applicable whether the cells are connected in series or in parallel. Although in the embodiments described above three cells are used any number of cells can be chosen as required. Additionally, the material, shape and method of assembly of the housing and/or the individual cells can be varied as required. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. An electric battery comprising two or more cells, each cell having at least one negative and one positive connector, the cells all being mounted in a housing such that all the connectors extend from one end of the housing, and a printed circuit board arranged at said one end of the housing, all of the connectors being connected to said printed circuit board.