KR20060037850A - Pouch type lithium secondary battery - Google Patents

Abstract

In a bare cell including an electrode assembly having two electrodes and a separator and a pouch in which the electrode assembly is embedded, both the bare cell and the protection circuit are coated with a resin mold in a state in which a safety device including a protection circuit is coupled. Disclosed is a resin molded secondary battery characterized in that it is formed.

Therefore, in forming a secondary battery product using a pouch-type bare cell, the size of the secondary battery can be reduced while sufficiently protecting the appearance of the pouch, and process time and cost by production and assembly of the hard pack parts can be saved. .

Description

Resin Molded Secondary Battery and Formation Method {Pouch type lithium secondary battery}

1 is a perspective view showing a state before a pouch is sealed in an example of a pouch-type lithium secondary battery;

2A and 2B are views illustrating a bonding state of an electrode tab and a protection circuit board in a core pack battery in the process of forming the present invention;

3 is a perspective view illustrating a form in which a terminal assembly having external input / output terminals is mounted on a protection circuit board unlike FIG.

4 is a perspective view showing a state in which a flange portion or a fusion portion, which is a side of a pouch in which a protection circuit board is installed, is folded and taped thereon;

Fig. 5 is a perspective perspective view showing a state in which the whole is put into a mold and coated with a resin mold in the state of Fig. 4.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

10: upper pouch 11: heat adhesive layer

12: metal film 20: lower pouch

21: groove 23: edge portion

30: electrode assembly 31, 35: positive and negative electrodes

33: Separator 37,38: Tap

39: tape 42: weld

44: spacer 52,62: external input / output terminal

50: protection circuit board 60: terminal assembly

70: sheet 80: resin (resin layer)

100: pouch 200: resin mold type secondary battery

The present invention relates to a secondary battery, and more particularly to a resin mold type secondary battery and a method of forming the same.

Secondary batteries are more economical than disposable batteries because they can be repeatedly used over and over again. In recent years, secondary batteries can be used as power sources for portable electric and electronic devices such as cellular phones, camcorders, and notebook computers. .

Such secondary batteries are nickel-cadmium batteries. Nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) batteries, lithium secondary batteries, and the like have been developed and used. The battery is essentially provided with a positive electrode, a negative electrode and an electrolyte. In order to increase the area of the electrode in order to increase the output of the battery, first, the electrode in contact with the electrolyte is formed wide, and the short circuit between the two electrodes is prevented through the separator.

These secondary batteries are usually formed in cans. The cans are usually formed of metal. One side of the can of cylindrical or cuboid type is usually formed in an open state. Through this open portion, the electrode assembly and electrolyte are placed inside the can, and the can is closed with a cap assembly having a size and shape corresponding to the open side to form a sealed bare cell.

On the other hand, a lithium secondary battery uses a nonaqueous electrolyte due to the reactivity of lithium with moisture. The electrolyte may be in the form of a solid polymer containing lithium salts, and may be in a liquid form in which the lithium salt is dissociated in an organic solvent, or in a form in which a liquid electrolyte is impregnated into the separator. In particular, when the solid polymer electrolyte or the electrolyte impregnated with the separator is used at the same time, the risk of leakage is small, so that the pouch may be used as a case of the electrode assembly and the electrolyte.

Pouches are advantageous as containers for secondary batteries in that they are lighter, less bulky, and more flexible in the shape of the battery or in the device installation method than cans made primarily of metal.

In the pouch type secondary battery, the electrode assembly is placed in the pouch and sealed to secure an electric passage connecting the electrode inside and the outside using a tab connected to the electrode. A bare cell formed by pouch sealing is connected to an accessory or structure such as a protective circuit module (PCM) or a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) using a tab to form a core pack.

When the core pack is built into the hard case and combined, a completed hard pack battery is formed. The hard case may be formed using a polypropylene resin or the like without a separate circuit or conductor part inside, but there may be a separate accessory circuit or another conductor part inside the hard case depending on the characteristics of the device in which the battery is used.

In the conventional hard case, however, the upper and lower parts are formed separately in the direction of the widest surface of the battery. Therefore, the core pack is mounted on the lower case, and the upper case is coupled to the lower case on which the core pack is mounted to form a battery in a hard pack state. If parts are divided in this way, a process of combining them is required, which increases the possibility of cost increase.

In addition, the hard case is intended to protect the appearance of the pouch-shaped bare cell, conventionally, when the injection molding of the hard case, there is a problem that the final battery product is large because the thickness of the injection molded product is thick, for example about 0.6mm. In this case, when the battery becomes large, there is a problem that it is difficult to meet the various demands of the consumer, which becomes a limiting factor for the design of the electric device in which the battery is mounted.

The present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, in forming a secondary battery product using a pouch-type bare cell, to provide a resin-molded secondary battery that can reduce the size of the secondary battery while sufficiently protecting the appearance of the pouch. It aims to do it.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a resin-molded secondary battery that can reduce the process time and cost by production and assembly of the hard pack components in forming the core pack battery into a hard pack battery.

The resin mold type secondary battery of the present invention for achieving the above object,

A bare cell comprising an electrode assembly having two electrodes and a separator and a pouch in which the electrode assembly is embedded is formed by being covered with a resin mold in a state in which a safety device including a protection circuit is coupled.

In the present invention, the resin may be a polyolefin resin layer, a polyester resin layer, polyamide, polyurethane or the like.

In the present invention, the safety device is preferably made of a single component in the form of a circuit board. Although external I / O terminals may be formed on the circuit board itself even after resin molding, there may be a terminal assembly connected by welding or the like to a separate connection terminal formed on the circuit board, and an external I / O terminal may be formed on a part of the terminal assembly. It may be.

Resin-mold secondary battery forming method of the present invention for achieving the above object comprises the steps of forming a pouch-type bare cell, attaching a safety device including a protective circuit board to the bare cell, a bare cell with a safety device It is characterized by comprising a step of forming a resin coating by pouring the molten resin in the mold.

In the method of the present invention, a step of forming a bare cell or attaching a safety device may further include wrapping a portion of the pouch with a separate member or temporarily fixing the safety device.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view showing a state before a pouch is sealed in an example of a pouch-type lithium secondary battery.

Referring to FIG. 1, a general method of forming a pouch-type lithium secondary battery, first, a lower portion 20 of a pouch in which a groove 21 for accommodating an electrode assembly is formed and an upper portion of a pouch 10 covering the groove 21 are described. To form. The groove 21 is formed through a press working or the like. Depending on the shape of the pouch, the groove may not be formed. In the press working for forming the groove, a gas chamber groove (not shown) for degassing may be further formed in addition to the groove in which the electrode assembly 30 is accommodated.

The ordinary electrode assembly 30 is wound into a multi-layer film laminated in the order of the anode 31, the separator 33, and the cathode 35 in a spiral shape to form a jelly roll. When winding up the jelly roll, a separator is added to the electrode surface exposed to the outside of the roll to prevent a short circuit between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. When the jelly roll is placed in the lower groove 21 of the pouch, the pouch is sealed by heating and pressing the edge 23 protruding outward from the groove in the form of a flange while keeping the edge 23 in close contact.

Electrode tabs 37 and 38 are formed at one side of the positive electrode 31 and the negative electrode 35 to electrically connect the positive electrode 31 and the negative electrode 35 of the electrode assembly 30 to the outside of the pouch. These electrode tabs 37 and 38 are formed to protrude from the jelly roll in the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the jelly roll is wound, and are drawn out through the pouch through a sealed side of the pouch film.

The pouch film usually consists of a plurality of functional films. In the three-layer pouch film, the interlayer metal film 13 is usually formed of aluminum. The heat-adhesive layer 11 constituting the inner layer of the pouch film is usually made of a heat-adhesive material such as a cast polypropylene (CPP) layer, and protects the metal foil from the electrolyte, and short-circuits between the anode, cathode, and electrode leads.短 絡) to prevent. The outer layer film is usually formed of a film which has a high mechanical strength such as nylon and can protect the inside.

Both sides of the flanged portion of the pouch in which the electrode tabs are not pulled out are surrounded by insulating tape and folded so as to be in close contact with the sidewall of the grooved pouch. Further, in this step, the flange portions which are both sides may be closely adhered to the grooved pouch side wall by tape or the like.

2A and 2B are diagrams illustrating a bonding state of an electrode tab and a protection circuit board in a core pack battery in the process of forming the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2A, the electrode tab 37 is folded once so that the protection circuit board 50 is positioned upside down, and an insulator spacer for preventing an electrical short between the upper surface of the protection circuit board 50 and the electrode tab 37 in reverse. 44) is intervened. The connection between the electrode tab 37 and the terminal of the protective circuit board 50 is made by welding 42 or soldering.

Referring to FIG. 2B, the electrode tab 37 is folded twice. There is a weld 42 between the electrode tab 37 and the terminal of the protective circuit board 50.

In these examples, the thickness of the protective circuit board 50 or the electrode tab 37 is smaller than the thickness of the electrode assembly or the thickness of the pouch including the electrode assembly. If an external input / output terminal 52 is formed directly on the protective circuit board 50 and the terminal is exposed to the resin when it is coated with resin by the subsequent molding, the terminal may be exposed to an appropriate height in comparison with the pouch surface. It needs to be adjusted. Therefore, a method of installing the spacer 44 between the protective circuit board and the electrode tab or between the folded electrode tab can be used.

On the other hand, the spacer 44 is not necessarily exposed to the external input and output terminal 52, but also between the tab 37 and the protective circuit board 50, which is easily deformable, with the tape or the like to suppress the deformation by itself or to maintain a constant mutual position. It can also play a role.

3 is a perspective view illustrating a form in which a terminal assembly having external input / output terminals is mounted on a protection circuit board unlike FIG. 2.

According to FIG. 3, the external input / output terminals 62 formed in the terminal assembly 60 after the resin coating are controlled by adjusting the thickness and position of the tab and the protective circuit board 50 and the size and position of the terminal assembly 60. To the outside world. Of course, in order to expose the external input / output terminal 62, in addition to adjusting only the height of the external input / output terminal, a part may be required to be in close contact with the surface of the external input / output terminal 62 to prevent the resin from being coated on the external input / output terminal.

4 is a view showing a state in which a flange part or a fusion part, which is a side of a pouch in which a protection circuit board is installed, is folded and taped over it.

This taping operation consists of a soft film or sheet (sheet 70), and the variable and easily deformable portion is brought into close contact with the groove portion of the electrode assembly having a relatively uniform shape, thereby making the entire pouch 100 stable and compact. It is intended to be in one form.

The member used for taping is preferably made of a thin material so as to minimize the increase in the volume of the battery due to taping and limited to the necessary portion. The mounting of the spacers mentioned in the description of Figures 2A and 2B can also be done together in the taping step.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a resin mold type secondary battery 200 in which a pouch 100 with a protective circuit board is placed in a mold and a hot melt resin is poured into a space in the mold to complete an appearance.

Although the pouch has a stable size and appearance through taping or spacer installation work, since the pouch does not have a formal appearance such as a can, a pin for fixing the pouch may be installed in the mold. Since the resin molding operation is commonly used as a method of fixing the bare cell and the protection circuit board in the can-type secondary battery, detailed description thereof is omitted.

Through the molding process, the spaces between the pouch and the protective circuit board are filled with the resin 80 and their surfaces are also covered with the resin 80. The resin coating is made over the entire surface. In order to increase the adhesion between the resin 80 and the pouch and the protective circuit board, the pouch outer layer and the type of resin may be appropriately selected. If there is a tape or sheet 70 as shown in Fig. 4, and if the tape is selected as an appropriate material, the tape can also be used for close contact between the resin 80 and the pouch portion.

In the present invention, even if the tape or the pouch outer layer is a polymer material, the adhesive force may be weakened to the tab or the protective circuit board even though there is no problem with the molding resin and the adhesive force. Therefore, these parts may be used as an adhesive buffer layer by dip or spray. It may be treated first and resin molding may be performed. It is preferable that an adhesive buffer layer consists of a high adhesive material layer. The high adhesive material layer may be made of a metal part, a tab, or the like that constitutes a safety device, an epoxy resin and other adhesive components capable of maintaining high adhesion.

As the hot melt resin for filling and coating, a polyolefin resin layer, a polyester resin layer, polyamide, polyurethane, or the like can be used.

As the polyolefin resin, polypropylene, chlorinated polypropylene, polyethylene, ethylene propylene copolymer, polyethylene and acrylic acid copolymer, polypropylene and acrylic acid copolymer, etc. may be used. As polyester resin, polyethylene terephthalate and polybutyl Lenterephthalates, polyethylene naphthalates, polyester copolymers, polycarbonates, and the like can be used.

According to the present invention, the thickness of the entire battery can be reduced by the effect of reducing the thickness of the hard case of the hard pack battery.

In addition, according to the present invention can be produced by dividing the hard case into upper and lower parts, and save the processing time and cost of assembling the core pack battery and the failure rate by avoiding the defects during post-processing as the post-processing is reduced Can be lowered.

In addition, the exterior may be integrally coated with a resin to make it smooth and beautiful, and when printed directly on the resin, it may have an effect of not using a separate packaging tape.

Claims (15)

In a bare cell comprising an electrode assembly having two electrodes and a separator and a pouch in which the electrode assembly is embedded, A safety device including a protection circuit is combined, Resin-mold secondary battery characterized in that the bare cell and the safety device is formed by coating with a resin mold. The method of claim 1, The resin is a resin molded secondary battery, characterized in that made of one of a polyolefin resin layer, a polyester resin layer, polyamide, polyurethane. The method of claim 2, The polyolefin-based resin is a resin molded secondary battery, characterized in that one of polypropylene, chlorinated polypropylene, polyethylene, ethylene propylene copolymer, polyethylene and acrylic acid copolymer, polypropylene and acrylic acid copolymer. The method of claim 2, The polyester resin is a resin mold-type secondary battery, characterized in that using one of polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyethylene naphthalate, polyester copolymer, polycarbonate. The method of claim 1, The safety device is a resin molded secondary battery, characterized in that consisting of a single component in the form of a circuit board. The method of claim 5, wherein A resin mold type secondary battery, wherein an external input / output terminal is formed on the circuit board itself. The method of claim 1, Resin-molded secondary battery characterized in that the safety assembly is connected to the terminal assembly as a separate component, the external input and output terminals are formed in the terminal assembly. The method of claim 1, And a spacer is attached between the tab connecting the electrode in the bare cell and the protection circuit of the safety device and the safety device or the bent portion of the tab. The method of claim 1, At least the tab drawn from the protective circuit board or the bare cell has an adhesive buffer layer on the interface with the resin mold. The method of claim 9, The adhesive buffer layer is a resin mold type secondary battery, characterized in that made of one of the adhesive materials containing an epoxy resin. The method of claim 1, At least a portion of the pouch of the bare cell is a resin mold type secondary battery, characterized in that the adhesive member is attached to the interface with the resin mold. Forming a pouch-type bare cell, Attaching a safety device including a protection circuit board to the bare cell; And placing the bare cell with the safety device in a mold to pour molten resin to form a resin coating. The method of claim 12, After forming the bare cell or attaching the safety device, Before the step of forming the resin coating, The method of claim 1, further comprising wrapping a predetermined portion of the pouch forming the bare cell as a separate member. The method of claim 12, After forming the bare cell or attaching the safety device, Before the step of forming the resin coating, And temporarily fixing a relative position between the safety device, the bare cell, and the tab pulled out of the bare cell as a separate member. The method of claim 12, Attaching the safety device And a terminal assembly having an external input / output terminal formed as a separate component to the safety device.

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