JP2013254678A - Manufacturing method and manufacturing device of electrode for battery, and manufacturing method and manufacturing device of battery - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technology for manufacturing a separator integrated electrode for a battery obtained by molding a separator member in a projecting/recessed shape following a projecting/recessed shape of an active material layer provided on a collector, and a technology for manufacturing a battery using the electrode for a battery.SOLUTION: A separator member 54 is disposed at an opposite side of copper foil 51 functioning as a negative electrode collector with respect to a negative electrode active material layer 52 of a projecting/recessed shape obtained by providing line-shaped patterns 521 mutually parallelly on the copper foil 51. The separator member 54 is molded in a projecting/recessed shape following the projecting/recessed shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 by relatively moving linear projecting parts 212 of a type member 21 from an opposite side of the negative active material layer 52 with respective to the separator member 54 toward recessed parts 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52. Thus, a separator integrated electrode for a battery 55 having a nest structure is manufactured.

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for manufacturing a battery electrode in which a separator member is formed in an uneven shape following the uneven shape of an active material layer provided on a current collector, and a technique for manufacturing a battery using the battery electrode. Is.

  For example, Patent Document 1 describes a stacked lithium ion secondary battery including a flat electrode group in which a positive electrode, a separator, and a negative electrode are stacked and stacked. The positive electrode is composed of a positive electrode current collector and a positive electrode active material layer, and the negative electrode is composed of a negative electrode current collector and a negative electrode active material layer. The positive electrode and the negative electrode are disposed so that the positive electrode active material layer and the negative electrode active material layer face each other with the separator interposed therebetween. The electrode group configured as described above is inserted into the exterior case from the opening of the exterior case, and then an electrolyte is injected into the exterior case. Thereafter, the opening is welded while vacuuming the inside of the exterior case. Thus, the manufacture of the lithium ion secondary battery is completed.

Japanese Patent No. 4695170

  The current is realized by insertion / extraction of lithium ions in the positive electrode active material layer and the negative electrode active material layer. For this reason, the magnitude of the current is affected by the contact area between the electrolyte and the active material. That is, the increase in the contact area contributes to the increase in the amount of current. Therefore, it has been proposed to increase the contact area by finishing the active material layer into an uneven shape. In this case, the problem is the shape and molding of the separator. That is, the separator generally has a flat shape, but it is necessary to process the separator into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of the active material layer for the following reason. The reason is as follows.

  In a conventionally proposed battery, both of the positive electrode and the negative electrode have a structure having a series of comb-like parallel protrusions, and are arranged so as to mesh with each other while maintaining a certain gap. Therefore, in the battery, it is necessary to adopt a structure in which a separator is interposed in the gap between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. Moreover, in order to reduce the internal resistance of the electrolyte and the ion movement distance, it is necessary to finish the separator into an uneven shape corresponding to the uneven shape of the positive electrode and the negative electrode. Then, the positive electrode and the negative electrode are engaged with each other through the separator, whereby a three-dimensional battery having a nested structure is obtained. In the present specification, the electrodes constituting such a three-dimensional battery are referred to as “nested electrodes”.

  However, as well as a manufacturing technique for manufacturing a nested electrode, a manufacturing technique for a battery using the nested electrode has not yet been established.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a technique for manufacturing a separator-integrated battery electrode in which a separator member is formed into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of an active material layer provided on a current collector, and It aims at providing the technique which manufactures the battery using the said electrode for batteries.

  In order to achieve the above object, the battery electrode manufacturing method according to the present invention provides a preparation step of preparing an uneven active material layer in which a plurality of linear protrusions are provided in parallel with each other on a current collector, An arrangement step of disposing a separator member on the opposite side of the current collector with respect to the active material layer, and a linear protrusion from the opposite side of the active material layer toward the concave portion of the active material layer relative to the separator member And a forming step of forming the separator member into an uneven shape following the uneven shape of the active material layer.

  Further, in order to achieve the above object, the battery manufacturing method according to the present invention includes the following (a) steps (a-1) to (a-3), and an electrode for forming a separator-integrated electrode: And (a-1) preparing a concavo-convex first active material layer in which a plurality of linear protrusions are provided in parallel with each other on the first current collector, (a-2) first active A step of disposing a separator member on the opposite side of the first current collector with respect to the material layer; and (a-3) forming a linear protrusion from the opposite side of the first active material layer relative to the separator member to the first active material. Forming a separator member into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of the first active material layer by relatively moving toward the concave portion of the layer; (b) a separator member on the side opposite to the surface in contact with the first active material layer Forming an active material layer on the surface of the active material layer; and (c) forming a second current collector on the surface of the second active material layer opposite to the surface in contact with the separator member. And a current collector forming step.

  In order to achieve the above object, a battery electrode manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention collects a plurality of linear convex portions on a concavo-convex active material layer formed in parallel with each other on a current collector. It has a conveyance part which conveys a separator member on the opposite side of an electric body, and a linear projection part, and is relative to the separator member from the opposite side of an active material layer toward a crevice of an active material layer. And a molding part that molds the separator member into an uneven shape that follows the uneven shape of the active material layer.

  Furthermore, in order to achieve the above object, the battery manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention provides a first active material layer having a concavo-convex shape in which a plurality of linear convex portions are formed in parallel with each other on the first current collector. And a linear projecting portion on the opposite side of the first current collector, the linear projecting portion from the opposite side of the first active material layer to the separator member. A forming part for forming the separator member into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of the first active material layer by moving relatively toward the concave portion of the layer, and a separator member on the opposite side of the surface in contact with the first active material layer A layer forming portion for forming a second active material layer on the surface; and a current collector forming portion for forming a second current collector on the surface of the second active material layer opposite to the surface in contact with the separator member. It is characterized by that.

  In the invention thus configured, the separator member is disposed on the opposite side of the current collector with respect to the concavo-convex active material layer. The linear protrusion is moved relative to the separator member from the opposite side of the active material layer toward the recess of the active material layer. As a result, the linear protrusion pushes a part of the separator member into the concave portion of the active material layer to form the separator member into an uneven shape that follows the uneven shape of the active material layer. As a result, a nested electrode can be obtained.

  Here, when three or more linear convex portions are provided, the active material layer has a plurality of concave portions. In this case, a plurality of linear protrusions may be provided. For example, while rotating a cylindrical or columnar mold member having a plurality of linear protrusions on the outer peripheral surface around an axis, the active material layer and the separator member are moved relative to the mold member to The linear protrusions may enter the corresponding recesses. Thereby, the process which pushes a separator member into the recessed part of an active material layer is performed sequentially in conjunction with rotation operation of a mold member, and molding efficiency improves. As another aspect, a plurality of linear protrusions are obtained by relatively moving a plate-shaped mold member having a plurality of linear protrusions on the surface facing the active material layer toward the active material layer and the separator member. May be collectively entered into the corresponding recesses. In this case, the separator member is pushed together into the plurality of recesses, and the molding efficiency is improved.

  The active material layer can be provided on the current collector in various forms. For example, the active material material constituting the active material layer is ejected in a rod shape from the nozzle onto the current collector, and the linear protrusion is formed. You may employ | adopt the aspect of apply | coating. In addition, the first active material is supplied from the nozzle to the surface of the current collector to form a flat first layer, and the second active material having the same polarity as the first active material is supplied from the nozzle to the first layer. A mode in which the second layer having linear protrusions is formed on the surface of the first layer by discharging in a rod shape may be employed. In these aspects, since the linear protrusion is stably formed, the performance as a battery becomes more stable.

  According to the present invention, after the separator member is disposed on the opposite side of the current collector with respect to the concavo-convex active material layer, the linear protrusion is formed on the separator member from the opposite side of the active material layer to the active material layer. The separator member is molded by relatively moving toward the recess. Therefore, it is possible to finish the separator member into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of the active material layer to form a nested electrode.

It is a block diagram which shows the battery manufacturing system which is one Embodiment of the manufacturing apparatus of the battery concerning this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the manufacturing method which manufactures a battery using the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the manufacturing method of the electrode for batteries. It is a figure which shows the manufacturing process of a battery typically. It is a figure which shows the manufacturing process of a battery typically. It is a figure which shows 1st Embodiment of the electrode manufacturing apparatus with which the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. 1 is equipped. It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structure of the electrode manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows 2nd Embodiment of the electrode manufacturing apparatus with which the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. 1 is equipped. It is a schematic diagram which shows other embodiment of the manufacturing method of the battery concerning this invention. It is a flowchart which shows another embodiment of the manufacturing method of the battery concerning this invention. It is a figure which shows typically the manufacturing method of the battery shown in FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a battery manufacturing system as an embodiment of a battery manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. The battery manufacturing system 1 includes an electrode manufacturing apparatus 2, a layer forming apparatus 3, a current collector forming apparatus 4, and an injection / assembly apparatus 5, and manufactures a battery as follows. Here, the embodiment will be described by exemplifying a case of manufacturing a lithium ion secondary battery.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a manufacturing method for manufacturing a battery using the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a method for manufacturing a battery electrode. 4 and 5 are diagrams schematically showing a battery manufacturing process. Although a specific configuration of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 will be described in detail later, a battery electrode is manufactured by the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 (step S1).

  The battery electrode is a separator electrode composite in which a separator member is provided in a nested structure with respect to the negative electrode (negative electrode current collector + negative electrode active material layer), that is, a separator-integrated electrode, and the following step S11 shown in FIG. It is manufactured by executing S15. That is, in step S <b> 11, a metal foil that functions as a negative electrode current collector, for example, a copper foil 51 is prepared in the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2. A coating liquid containing a negative electrode active material is applied to the surface of the copper foil 51 by a so-called nozzle dispensing method, and the coated copper foil 51 passes through a drying furnace. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 4A, a plurality of line-shaped patterns 521 extending in the Y direction are formed on the surface of the copper foil 51. In this embodiment, the plurality of line patterns 521 are parallel to each other and arranged at equal intervals in the horizontal direction X orthogonal to the Y direction. In this way, the uneven negative electrode active material layer 52 is formed on the surface of the copper foil 51 by the plurality of line-shaped patterns 521 (step S12), and the negative electrode 53 is configured by the copper foil 51 and the negative electrode active material layer 52.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 4B, a plate-like separator member 54 is disposed on the negative electrode active material layer 52 (step S13). That is, the separator member 54 is positioned on the opposite side of the copper foil 51 with respect to the negative electrode active material layer 52 (the (+ Z) direction side in the figure).

  Following this, the separator member 54 is molded by the mold member 21 provided in the molding unit of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 (steps S13 to S15). As shown in FIG. 4C, the mold member 21 has a flat plate-like base portion 211 and a plurality of linear protrusion portions 212 protruding from the base portion 211 toward the negative electrode active material layer 52. However, the size is not limited to this, and is arbitrary. In this embodiment, the base portion 211 has a planar size comparable to that of the copper foil 51. Each linear protrusion 212 has a line shape extending in the Y direction. These linear protrusions 212 are formed at equal intervals in the X direction on the lower surface of the base portion 211, that is, the surface 213 facing the separator member 54. Therefore, the mold member 21 has an uneven shape in the XZ section. The width of the projection of the mold member 21, that is, the linear protrusion 212 in the X direction is narrower than the interval between the adjacent line patterns 521 in the X direction. On the other hand, the space in the X direction between the recesses 214 of the mold member 21, that is, the space between the adjacent linear protrusions 212 is wider than the width in the X direction of the line pattern 521. The linear protrusion 212 (the protrusion of the mold member 21) faces the recess 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52, that is, the space sandwiched by the adjacent line patterns 521, and the recess 214 of the mold member 21 forms a line. The mold member 21 is disposed above the separator member 54 in a state of facing the pattern 521 (the convex portion of the negative electrode active material layer 52) (step S13).

  When the positioning of the mold member 21 with respect to the negative electrode 53 and the separator member 54 is completed, the mold member 21 relatively moves toward the negative electrode 53 and the separator member 54. Then, after the linear protrusion 212 of the mold member 21 contacts the upper surface of the separator member 54, the contact portion is pushed into the recess 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4D, the separator member 54 is deformed by being sandwiched between the mold member 21 and the negative electrode 53, and is formed into an uneven shape following the uneven shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 (step S14). ). After the molding is completed, the mold member 21 is retracted from the negative electrode 53 and the separator member 54 (step S15). Thus, as shown in FIG. 5A, the convex portion of the separator member 54 enters the concave portion 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52, and the line pattern 521 (the convex portion of the negative electrode active material layer 52) is the concave portion of the separator member 54. A separator-integrated battery electrode 55 having a nested structure is produced (step S1).

Returning to FIG. 2, the description of the battery manufacturing method will be continued. The battery electrode 55 manufactured by the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 is transferred to the layer forming apparatus 3 by a transfer apparatus (not shown). In the layer forming apparatus 3, the positive electrode active material layer 56 is formed on the separator member 54 of the battery electrode 55 (step S2). That is, the coating liquid containing the positive electrode active material is applied on the surface of the separator member 54 opposite to the surface in contact with the negative electrode active material layer 52, enters the recess of the battery electrode 55, and extends in the Y direction. A plurality of pattern 561 is formed. Further, a film portion 562 is formed so as to connect these line-shaped patterns 561 to each other on the side opposite to the battery electrode 55 ((+ Z) direction side in FIG. 5) and to cover the convex portion of the battery electrode 55. The In the state separated by the separator member 54 in this manner, the convex portion of the positive electrode active material layer 56, that is, the line pattern 561 enters the concave portion 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52 through the separator member 54 and the concave portion ( That is, the line pattern 521 (the convex portion of the negative electrode active material layer 52) enters the space between the adjacent line patterns 561). In addition, about the layer formation apparatus 3 which apply | coats the coating liquid containing a positive electrode active material material and forms a positive electrode active material layer, the conventionally used coating apparatus can be used.

  The intermediate product (copper foil 51 + negative electrode active material layer 52 + separator member 54 + positive electrode active material layer 56) manufactured by the layer forming device 3 is conveyed to the current collector forming device 4 by a conveying device (not shown). In the current collector forming apparatus 4, a metal foil functioning as a positive electrode current collector, for example, an aluminum foil 57 is formed on the surface of the positive electrode active material layer 56 on the side opposite to the surface in contact with the separator member 54. In this way, a plate-like electrode group 58 is formed, in which the negative electrode 53 (copper foil 51 + negative electrode active material layer 52), separator member 54, and positive electrode (positive electrode active material layer 56 + aluminum foil 57) are laminated. However, a nested structure is formed inside the electrode group 58 as described above.

  Thereafter, the electrode group 58 is transferred to the injection / assembly apparatus 5, and steps S 4 to S 6 are executed by the injection / assembly apparatus 5 in the same manner as in the prior art to manufacture a finished battery product. That is, it is inserted into the exterior case from the opening of the exterior case (step S4). Subsequently, an electrolyte is injected into the exterior case from the case opening (step S5). Thereafter, the opening is welded while vacuuming the inside of the exterior case (step S6).

Here, as a material constituting each layer, a known material can be used as a constituent material of the lithium ion battery. As the positive electrode active material, for example, a material mainly composed of LiCoO ₂ (LCO) is used. For example, those mainly composed of Li ₄ Ti ₅ O ₁₂ (LTO) can be used. Further, for example, a polyethylene (PE) sheet can be used as the separator member 54, and an organic electrolytic solution or an ionic liquid can be used as the electrolytic solution. In addition, about the material of each functional layer, it is not limited to these, What is generally known as these functional materials can be used. For example, an LMO (M is Mn, Ni, Fe, or the like) -based material can be used as the positive electrode active material, and C, Si, or Sn can be used as the negative electrode active material. As the separator, a resin material such as polypropylene (PP) or polyolefin (PO) can be used. Examples of the organic electrolyte solution, it is possible to use those containing a lithium salt (e.g., _{LiClO 4, LiPF 6, LiBF 4} , LiCF 3 SO 3) and an organic solvent. Use organic solvents such as ethylene carbonate (EC), diethyl carbonate (DEC), propylene carbonate (PC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC), or a mixture of these. Can do.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, a part of the separator member 54 is formed by the linear protrusion 212 of the mold member 21 in a state where the flat separator member 54 is positioned with respect to the uneven negative electrode active material layer 52. Is pressed into the concave portion 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52 to form a concave-convex shape following the concave-convex shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52. Therefore, the battery electrode 55 having a nested structure can be formed satisfactorily.

  Further, as a method of manufacturing the battery electrode 55, for example, a manufacturing method (hereinafter referred to as “comparative example”) in which the separator member 54 is mounted on the negative electrode 53 after the separator member 54 is formed into an uneven shape. Is also possible. However, according to the embodiment, the battery electrode 55 having a nested structure can be manufactured with fewer manufacturing steps than in the comparative example. In addition, since the separator member 54 is formed using the negative electrode active material layer 52 having an uneven shape, the separator member 54 can follow the uneven shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 with higher accuracy, and a high-quality product. Is obtained.

  Furthermore, since the battery is manufactured using the battery electrode 55 having a nested structure, the contact area between the electrolyte and the active material is increased, and the ratio of the contact area to the volume of the entire battery is increased. For this reason, the amount of current can be increased, and a battery with high efficiency and high output can be obtained. Thus, the lithium ion secondary battery manufactured by the above method is small and has high performance.

  Next, a specific example of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. 6 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of an electrode manufacturing apparatus equipped in the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the electrode manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. In the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2, a copper foil roll 511 obtained by winding the copper foil 51 into a roll shape is detachable from a roll mounting shaft (not shown) of the unwinding portion 22. The unwinding unit 22 feeds the copper foil 51 from the copper foil roll 511 mounted on the roll mounting shaft in the Y direction in the form of a continuous sheet (web) and feeds it to the main transport table 23. The main transport table 23 is configured by, for example, a belt conveyor mechanism, and transports in the Y direction while holding the back surface of the copper foil 51 in accordance with a transport command from the control unit 27 that controls the entire electrode manufacturing apparatus 2. The transport path of the copper foil 51 by the main transport base 23 extends in the Y direction, and the coating unit 24, the drying furnace 25, and the cutting unit 26 are disposed on the transport path from the upstream side (left hand side in FIG. 6). Yes.

  The coating unit 24 includes a discharge nozzle 241 provided with a plurality of discharge ports (not shown) for discharging a coating liquid containing the negative electrode active material material along a horizontal direction X orthogonal to the Y direction. The discharge nozzle 241 is disposed above the surface of the sheet-like copper foil 51 that is transported in the Y direction by the main transport base 23. The coating liquid is discharged onto the surface of the copper foil 51 from each discharge port of the discharge nozzle 241 in accordance with a discharge command from the control unit 27. In the present embodiment, a constant amount of coating liquid is continuously ejected from each ejection port in a bar shape while the copper foil 51 is transported at a constant speed in the Y direction by the main transport base 23. By doing so, the coating solution is applied in a line shape along the Y direction on the surface of the copper foil 51. The discharge nozzle 241 is provided with a plurality of discharge ports at equal intervals in the direction X. For this reason, a desired number of coating liquid lines 242 are collectively formed on the surface of the copper foil 51.

  A drying furnace 25 is provided on the downstream side in the transport direction Y of the coating unit 24. The inside of the drying furnace 25 is adjusted to a temperature according to the temperature command of the control unit 27. For this reason, the copper foil 51 having the coating liquid line 242 is subjected to a drying process while passing through the drying furnace 25, so that the coating liquid line 242 becomes a line-shaped pattern 521, and the negative electrode active material having an uneven shape on the surface of the copper foil 51. A layer 52 is formed (FIG. 4A). The negative electrode active material layer 52 thus formed has a desired hardness by a drying process, and the line pattern 521 is not deformed when the separator member 54 is formed as described later, and the uneven shape is maintained.

  The copper foil 51 that has passed through the drying furnace 25 is transported to the cutting unit 26 by the main transport base 23. The cutting part 26 has a pair of cutter members. Although only the upper cutter member 261 is illustrated in FIG. 6, both cutter members are driven to open and close in response to an open / close command from the control unit 27. In this embodiment, every time the sheet-like copper foil 51 having the line-shaped pattern 251 passes through the opened cut portion 26 by a predetermined length, the conveyance of the copper foil 51 by the main conveyance table 23 is temporarily stopped. At the same time, both cutter members are driven to close during the stop. Thereby, the copper foil 51 is cut into an appropriate length, and the negative electrode 53 having a size suitable for the battery is separated from the sheet-like copper foil 51.

  On the downstream side of the cutting unit 26 in the transport direction Y, two shuttle transport tables 28A and 28B are provided. Each shuttle carrier 28A, 28B can hold a negative electrode 53 (a copper foil 51 having a predetermined length in the Y direction + a negative electrode active material layer 52). These two shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B are arranged side by side in the X direction, and slide together in the (−X) direction in response to the first slide command from the control unit 27. For example, in FIG. 6, the shuttle transport base 28 </ b> B is positioned on the transport path of the copper foil 51 by the main transport base 23 and can receive and hold the sheet-like copper foil 51 transported through the cutting part 26. Yes. In this state, the other shuttle carrier 28A is positioned at a position deviated in the (−X) direction from the carrier path. In order to facilitate understanding of the configuration, the position of the shuttle transport table 28A at this time is referred to as a “first molding position”, and the position of the shuttle transport table 28B is referred to as a “loading position”.

  On the contrary, when the second slide command is output from the control unit 27, both shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B slide together in the (+ X) direction. As a result, the shuttle transport base 28B is positioned at a position deviated in the (+ X) direction from the transport path, and the shuttle transport base 28A is positioned from the first molding position to the carry-in position. The position of the shuttle carrier 28B at this time is referred to as a “second molding position”.

  On the downstream side of the carrying-in position in the carrying direction Y, a separator carrying unit 29 (FIG. 7) is provided. Separator transport unit 29 takes plate-like separator members 54 one by one from a separator supply unit (not shown) and transports them to the upper surface of negative electrode 53 held on a shuttle transport base located at the carry-in position (FIG. 4). (See (b)). For example, when the shuttle transport base 28A is positioned at the carry-in position, the separator member 54 is placed on the upper surface of the negative electrode 53 held by the shuttle transport base 28A. Thereafter, when the first slide command is given from the control unit 27, the shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B slide together in the (−X) direction. Accordingly, the separator member 54 is conveyed to the first molding position by the shuttle conveyance table 28A while being placed on the negative electrode 53. Conversely, when the shuttle transport base 28B is positioned at the carry-in position, the separator member 54 is placed on the upper surface of the negative electrode 53 held by the shuttle transport base 28B. Thereafter, when the second slide command is given from the control unit 27, the shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B slide together in the (+ X) direction. As a result, the separator member 54 is transported to the second molding position by the shuttle transport base 28 </ b> B while being placed on the negative electrode 53. As described above, in the present embodiment, the negative electrode 53 and the separator member 54 positioned at the transport position are distributed and moved to the first molding position and the second molding position by the two shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B.

  A first molding portion 21A equipped with the mold member 21 is provided at the first molding position. On the other hand, a second molding portion 21B equipped with the mold member 21 is provided at the second molding position. 21 A of 1st shaping | molding parts and the 2nd shaping | molding part 21B raise / lower the mold member 21 according to the shaping | molding instruction | command from the control part 27, and shape | mold the separator member 54 in the uneven | corrugated shape which followed the uneven | corrugated shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 ( FIG. 4 (c), FIG. 4 (d) and FIG. 5 (a)).

  As described above, the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 according to the first embodiment can satisfactorily form the battery electrode 55 having a nested structure. In addition, since the separator member 54 is formed using the negative electrode active material layer 52, the separator member 54 can follow the uneven shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 with high accuracy, and a high-quality product is obtained. Further, since the separator member 54 is formed using the mold member 21 having the plurality of linear protrusions 212, the separator member 54 is formed with excellent efficiency. Furthermore, since the coating liquid containing the active material constituting the negative electrode active material layer 52 is discharged and applied in a bar shape from the discharge nozzle 241 onto the copper foil 51, the line pattern 521 is stably formed. As a result, the performance as a battery becomes more stable.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of an electrode manufacturing apparatus equipped in the battery manufacturing system shown in FIG. The second embodiment (FIG. 8) is greatly different from the first embodiment (FIG. 6) in the configuration of the mold member 21 and the molding operation. That is, in the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 according to the second embodiment, each mold member 21 includes a cylindrical or columnar base portion 211 and a plurality of linear protrusion portions 212 protruding from the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 211. It consists of The base portion 211 is rotatably provided with an axis 215 extending in the Y direction as a rotation center. A plurality of linear protrusions 212 project radially from the outer peripheral surface of the base part 211 at equal angular intervals around the axis 215. The angle is set to a value corresponding to the interval between the line patterns 521 of the negative electrode active material layer 52.

  Base portion 211 is connected to a motor (not shown), and the motor operates in response to a rotation command from control portion 27. By this rotation operation, the base portion 211 rotates in synchronization with the sliding movement of the shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B, and the plurality of linear protrusions 212 enter the corresponding concave portions 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52. For example, focusing on the concave portion 522 of one negative electrode active material layer 52, when the concave portion approaches the lowermost portion of the base portion 211, the linear protrusion 212 corresponding to the concave portion approaches the lowermost portion of the base portion 211, and the separator It abuts on the upper surface of the member 54. Further, due to the rotation of the base portion 211 and the progress of the slide movement of the shuttle carriages 28A and 28B, the linear protrusion 212 pushes the contact portion into the recess 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52, and the separator member 54 partially Molded. Thereafter, the linear protrusion 212 is separated from the concave portion, but the next concave portion approaches the lowermost portion of the base portion 211, and the partial molding of the separator member 54 is performed by the next linear protrusion 212. Such an operation is performed in parallel with the sliding movement of the shuttle carriages 28A and 28B, and the separator member 54 is formed. Other configurations and operations are basically the same as those of the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 according to the first embodiment.

  As described above, also in the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 according to the second embodiment, the battery electrode 55 having a nested structure can be satisfactorily formed as in the first embodiment. In addition, since the separator member 54 is formed using the negative electrode active material layer 52, the separator member 54 can follow the uneven shape of the negative electrode active material layer 52 with high accuracy, and a high-quality product is obtained. Further, since the separator member 54 is molded during the sliding movement of the shuttle transport bases 28A and 28B, excellent molding efficiency can be obtained.

  As described above, the battery manufacturing system 1 corresponds to an example of the “battery manufacturing apparatus” of the present invention, and the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2, the layer forming apparatus 3, and the current collector forming apparatus that constitute the battery manufacturing system 1. 4 corresponds to an example of the “battery electrode manufacturing apparatus”, the “layer forming unit”, and the “current collector forming unit” of the present invention. The line pattern 521 corresponds to an example of the “linear protrusion” in the present invention. Step S1 in FIG. 1 corresponds to an example of the “method for manufacturing a battery electrode” and the “electrode formation step (a)” of the present invention. Steps S2 and S3 in FIG. 1 correspond to examples of the “active material layer forming step (b)” and the “current collector forming step (c)” of the present invention, respectively. Steps S11 and S12 of FIG. 2 correspond to an example of “preparation step” and “step of preparing the first active material layer (a-1)” of the present invention. Step S13 in FIG. 2 corresponds to an example of the “placement step” and the “step (a-2) of placing the separator member” of the present invention. Step S14 in FIG. 2 corresponds to an example of the “forming step” and the “step (a-3) for forming the separator member” of the present invention.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications other than those described above can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the positive electrode active material layer 56 and the aluminum foil 57 are formed on the battery electrode 55 to manufacture a lithium ion secondary battery. However, as shown in FIG. The structure of may be partially changed.

  FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing another embodiment of the battery manufacturing method according to the present invention. There are two major differences between this embodiment and the previous embodiment (FIG. 5). The first point is that after the positive electrode active material layer 56 is formed on the separator member 54 of the battery electrode 55, the film portion 562 of the positive electrode active material layer 56 is scraped with a tool such as a mold. The second point is that, as shown in FIG. 9 (d), an aluminum foil 57 is formed on the upper surface of the positive electrode active material layer 56 and the separator member 54, which are constituted only by the line pattern 561 by the scraping process. It is.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing another embodiment of the battery manufacturing method according to the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically showing a method for manufacturing the battery shown in FIG. The point that this embodiment is greatly different from the previous embodiment (FIGS. 3 to 5) is a manufacturing mode of the battery electrode 55. More specifically, in the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2 of the present embodiment, a slit coater (not shown) is arranged on the upstream side of the nozzle dispensing type coating unit 24, and the negative electrode active material is so-called slit coated before coating by the coating unit 24. It is applied to the surface of the copper foil 51 by the method. Other configurations are basically the same. Accordingly, the following description will focus on the differences, and the same components will be denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 10, a metal foil that functions as a negative electrode current collector, for example, a copper foil 51 is prepared in the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2. In the electrode manufacturing apparatus 2, a coating liquid containing a negative electrode active material is discharged from a slit discharge port (not shown) of the slit coater. The slit discharge port is opened in the X direction to the same extent as the width of the copper foil 51, and the coating liquid is supplied to the surface of the copper foil 51. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 11A, a flat layer (hereinafter referred to as “first layer”) 523 is formed on the surface of the copper foil 51 (step S121). Note that the first layer 523 may be formed by a method other than the slit coating method, and a conventionally known coating method can be employed.

  Subsequent to the formation of the first layer 523, a coating liquid containing a negative electrode active material is applied to the surface of the first layer 523 by a nozzle dispensing method to form a second layer 521 having a line and space shape ( Step S122). Thereafter, the copper foil 51 in which the two layers 521 and 523 are laminated is passed through the drying furnace. As a result, as shown in FIG. 11B, a plurality of line-shaped patterns 521 extending in the Y direction are formed on the surface of the first layer 523. As described above, in this embodiment, the two layers 521 and 523 are stacked to form the uneven negative electrode active material layer 52A on the copper foil 51 (step S12A), and the copper foil 51 and the negative electrode active material layer 52A are formed. Thus, the negative electrode 53A is configured.

  Thereafter, as in the previous embodiment, after the flat separator member 54 is disposed on the negative electrode active material layer 52 (step S13), the separator member 54 is molded by the mold member 21 (steps S14 and S15). ). As a result, as shown in FIG. 11C, the convex portion of the separator member 54 enters the concave portion 522 of the negative electrode active material layer 52A, and the line pattern 521 (the convex portion of the negative electrode active material layer 52) is formed on the separator member 54. The separator-integrated battery electrode 55 </ b> A having a nested structure that enters the recess is manufactured.

  The battery electrode 55A is transported to the layer forming apparatus 3 by a transport device (not shown). Then, similarly to the previous embodiment, the formation of the positive electrode active material layer 56 and the formation of the aluminum foil 57 functioning as a positive electrode current collector are executed to form the electrode group 58A. Thus, a nested structure is formed in the electrode group 58A as described above. Thereafter, the electrode group 58 </ b> A is transferred to the injection / assembly apparatus 5, and a finished product of the three-dimensional battery is manufactured by the injection / assembly apparatus 5.

  In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the positive electrode active material layer 56 including only the line pattern 561 by scraping the film portion of the positive electrode active material layer 56 and the separator. An aluminum foil 57 may be formed on the upper surface of the member 54.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the separator member 54 is shape | molded by the negative electrode 53 and the mold member 21, and the battery electrode 55 is manufactured, you may replace a positive electrode and a negative electrode. That is, the separator member 54 may be disposed on the positive electrode in which the uneven positive electrode active material layer is formed on the positive electrode current collector such as an aluminum foil, and the mold member 21 may be used to form the separator member 54. And you may form a negative electrode active material layer and a negative electrode collector with respect to the battery electrode obtained in this way.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, in order to form the line-shaped pattern 521 on the copper foil 51, and to form the uneven | corrugated negative electrode active material layer 52, the nozzle dispensing method is used. However, a plurality of linear protrusions such as a line pattern may be formed on a current collector such as a copper foil by a known method other than this, for example, a nozzle scanning method.

  Further, the materials such as the current collector, active material, and electrolyte exemplified in the above embodiment are only examples, and are not limited thereto, and other materials used as a constituent material of the lithium ion battery are used. Even when a lithium ion battery or a battery electrode is manufactured, the manufacturing method of the present invention can be preferably applied. Further, the present invention can be applied not only to lithium ion batteries but also to the manufacture of all three-dimensional batteries having a nested structure and the manufacture of battery electrodes suitable for the batteries.

  The present invention relates to a technique for manufacturing a battery electrode in which a separator member is formed in an uneven shape following the uneven shape of an active material layer provided on a current collector, and a technique for manufacturing a battery using the battery electrode in general. Can be applied to.

1. Battery manufacturing system (battery manufacturing equipment)
2 ... Electrode manufacturing device (Battery electrode manufacturing device)
3 ... Layer forming device (layer forming unit)
4 ... Current collector forming device (current collector forming section)
21 ... Mold member 21A ... First molding part 21B ... Second molding part 51 ... Copper foil (negative electrode current collector, first current collector)
52, 52A ... negative electrode active material layer (first active material layer)
53, 53A ... Negative electrode 54 ... Separator member 55, 55A ... Electrode for battery 56 ... Positive electrode active material layer (first active material layer)
57 ... Aluminum foil (positive electrode current collector, second current collector)
212 ... linear protrusion 213 ... (facing the active material layer) surface 521 ... line pattern (linear protrusion, second layer)
523 ... first layer

Claims (8)

Preparing a concavo-convex active material layer in which a plurality of linear convex portions are provided in parallel with each other on a current collector;
An arranging step of arranging a separator member on the opposite side of the current collector with respect to the active material layer;
The separator member has a concavo-convex shape that follows the concavo-convex shape of the active material layer by moving a linear protrusion from the opposite side of the active material layer toward the concave portion of the active material layer relative to the separator member. A method for producing a battery electrode, comprising: a molding step of molding the battery. It is a manufacturing method of the battery electrode according to claim 1,
The preparatory step is a step of forming a plurality of concave portions in the active material layer by providing three or more linear convex portions,
In the molding step, the active material layer and the separator member are relative to the mold member while rotating a cylindrical or columnar mold member having a plurality of the linear protrusions on the outer peripheral surface around the axis. The battery electrode manufacturing method, which is a step of moving the plurality of linear protrusions into corresponding recesses by moving the plurality of linear protrusions respectively. It is a manufacturing method of the battery electrode according to claim 1,
The preparatory step is a step of forming a plurality of concave portions in the active material layer by providing three or more linear convex portions,
In the molding step, the plurality of lines are formed by relatively moving a plate-shaped mold member having a plurality of the linear protrusions on the surface facing the active material layer toward the active material layer and the separator member. A method for manufacturing a battery electrode, which is a step of bringing the protrusions into the corresponding recesses in a lump. A method for producing a battery electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The method for producing a battery electrode is a method in which the preparation step is a step of discharging the active material constituting the active material layer from a nozzle to the surface of the current collector in a rod shape to apply the linear protrusions. A method for producing a battery electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The preparatory step supplies a first active material from a nozzle to the surface of the current collector to form a flat first layer, and a second active material having the same polarity as the first active material A method for producing a battery electrode, which is a step of discharging a material from a nozzle onto the surface of the first layer in a rod shape to form a second layer having the linear protrusions. (a) having the following steps (a-1) to (a-3), an electrode forming step for forming a separator-integrated electrode; and
(a-1) preparing a concavo-convex first active material layer in which a plurality of linear convex portions are provided in parallel with each other on the first current collector;
(a-2) disposing a separator member on the opposite side of the first current collector from the first active material layer; and
(a-3) A linear protrusion is moved relative to the separator member from the opposite side of the first active material layer toward the recess of the first active material layer, and the first active material layer Forming the separator member into an uneven shape following the uneven shape;
(b) an active material layer forming step of forming a second active material layer on the surface of the separator member opposite to the surface in contact with the first active material layer;
(c) A method of manufacturing a battery, comprising: a current collector forming step of forming a second current collector on a surface of the second active material layer opposite to a surface in contact with the separator member. A transport unit that transports a separator member to the opposite side of the current collector with respect to the uneven active material layer formed by forming a plurality of linear protrusions parallel to each other on the current collector;
An uneven shape of the active material layer having a linear protrusion and relatively moving the linear protrusion toward the recess of the active material layer from the side opposite to the active material layer with respect to the separator member And a forming part for forming the separator member into a concavo-convex shape following the above. A transport unit configured to transport a separator member to the opposite side of the first current collector with respect to the first active material layer having a concavo-convex shape formed by forming a plurality of linear convex portions parallel to each other on the first current collector; ,
A linear protrusion, and the first protrusion is formed by relatively moving the linear protrusion from the opposite side of the first active material layer toward the recess of the first active material layer with respect to the separator member. A molding part for molding the separator member into a concavo-convex shape following the concavo-convex shape of the active material layer;
A layer forming portion for forming a second active material layer on the surface of the separator member opposite to the surface in contact with the first active material layer;
An apparatus for manufacturing a battery, comprising: a current collector forming portion that forms a second current collector on a surface of the second active material layer opposite to a surface in contact with the separator member.

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