Method for manufacturing strip-shaped electrode plate and device for manufacturing strip-shaped electrode plate

Abstract

Provided are a method for manufacturing a strip-shaped electrode plate and a device for manufacturing a strip-shaped electrode plate with which an undried protective layer can be efficiently heated. A strip-shaped electrode plate (1, 1a, 11, 11a) is provided with: a strip-shaped current collector foil (3) extending in the longitudinal direction (LH); active material layers (5, 15) provided on the surfaces (3A, 3B) of the current collector foil, leaving a foil exposed part (3E) from which the current collector foil is exposed; and a protective layer (7) provided between the foil exposed part and the active material layers. The manufacturing method is provided with a protection layer drying step (S3, S7) for drying an undried protection layer (7x) that is provided on a collector foil (3) and becomes a protection layer (7) by drying, and the protection layer drying step (S3, S7) has a step in which each irradiated portion (7xp) included in the undried protection layer (7x) is irradiated with linearly polarized and P-polarized linear P-polarized laser light (LLP, LLP1, LLP2, LLP3, LLP4) at an incidence angle ([theta] i) of 20-67 degrees. And protective layer heating steps (S31, S71) in which the protective layer is heated by means of the protective layer heating step (LLP4).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a strip electrode plate having an active material layer and a protective layer on a strip-shaped current collector foil, and an apparatus for manufacturing the strip electrode plate. Background Technology

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for manufacturing a strip electrode plate having a strip-shaped active material layer and a strip-shaped protective layer on a strip-shaped current collector foil. Specifically, it discloses a method for drying the undried active material layer and the protective layer coated on the current collector foil using hot air. On the other hand, Patent Document 2 discloses a method for drying the undried active material layer coated on the current collector foil using a laser when manufacturing a strip electrode plate having an active material layer on a strip-shaped current collector foil.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2021-174619

[0006] Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-169591 Summary of the Invention

[0007] The problem that the invention aims to solve

[0008] When applying an undried active material layer and an undried protective layer to a current collector foil, considering ease of application, the solid content of the protective layer paste must generally be lower than that of the active material paste. Therefore, per unit volume, drying the undried protective layer requires a larger amount of dispersant evaporation compared to drying the undried active material layer. Furthermore, brightly colored ceramic powders such as alumina powder are often used in the protective layer. Consequently, the protective layer is difficult to absorb infrared radiation and therefore difficult to heat. For these reasons, in hot air drying as shown in Patent Document 1, drying the protective layer generally takes longer than drying the active material layer.

[0009] Therefore, Patent Document 1 discloses a method in which, in order to promote the drying of the protective layer, the flow rate of a second hot air for drying the undried protective layer is increased compared to the flow rate of a first hot air for drying the undried active material layer. However, there are limitations in promoting the drying of the protective layer with hot air. Moreover, this method uses a large amount of hot air, resulting in low energy efficiency, and improvements are sought.

[0010] On the other hand, in Patent Document 2, a laser is used to dry the undried active material layer. However, in cases where a laser is used to dry both the undried active material layer and the undried protective layer, the drying of the protective layer usually takes longer than that of the active material layer.

[0011] Based on the above-mentioned situation, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a strip electrode plate capable of efficiently heating an undried protective layer, as well as an apparatus for manufacturing the strip electrode plate.

[0012] Solution for solving the problem

[0013] (1) One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problem is a method for manufacturing a strip electrode plate, the strip electrode plate comprising: a strip-shaped current collector foil extending in the length direction; an active material layer disposed on the surface of the current collector foil with exposed foil portions; and a protective layer disposed between the exposed foil portions and the active material layer, wherein the method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate comprises a protective layer drying step, the protective layer drying step drying an undried protective layer disposed on the current collector foil and which has become the protective layer by drying, the protective layer drying step comprising a protective layer heating step, the protective layer heating step irradiating the irradiated portion of the protective layer contained in the undried protective layer with a linearly polarized P-light laser at an incident angle of 20 degrees to 67 degrees, and heating the portion of the protective layer contained in the undried protective layer.

[0014] A linearly polarized P-laser is irradiated onto the undried protective layer with an incident angle ranging from 20 to 67 degrees. It is then determined that the absorption rate of the laser at the undried protective layer is increased compared to the case where a linearly polarized S-polarized laser is irradiated onto the undried protective layer, and also improved compared to the case where a linearly polarized or unpolarized (randomly polarized) laser is incident perpendicularly at an incident angle of 0 degrees. Using this configuration, the protective layer drying process in the above-described manufacturing method includes a protective layer heating process, in which a linearly polarized P-laser with an incident angle ranging from 20 to 67 degrees is obliquely incident to heat each irradiated portion of the undried protective layer. Therefore, in the above-described manufacturing method, the undried protective layer can be heated efficiently in the protective layer heating process, which is beneficial for the formation of the protective layer.

[0015] In the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plate as described in (1), preferably, the active material layer is a strip-shaped active material layer extending in the length direction, the foil exposed portion is a strip-shaped foil exposed portion extending in the length direction, and the protective layer is a strip-shaped protective layer extending in the length direction. The undried strip electrode plate with the strip-shaped undried protective layer is transported in a transport direction consistent with the length direction while the protective layer drying process is performed.

[0016] (2) Furthermore, the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plate as described in (1) may be configured such that: the current collector foil is made of aluminum, and the heating process of the protective layer is the following process: the exposed portion of the foil exposed portion, including at least the exposed portion adjacent to the undried protective layer, is also irradiated with the linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 25 degrees to 88 degrees to heat it.

[0017] In addition, when the current collector foil is made of copper, the incident angle of the linear P-polarized laser can be set to the range of 30 degrees to 86 degrees.

[0018] (3) In addition, the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plate as described in (1) or (2) may be configured such that: the above-mentioned protective layer drying process further includes a protective layer hot air drying process, which is carried out in parallel with the above-mentioned protective layer heating process, and hot air is blown onto the hot air heating part of the above-mentioned undried protective layer, including the part of the above-mentioned protective layer that is irradiated, to heat and dry it.

[0019] (4) Furthermore, the method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in any one of (1) to (3) may be configured such that: the undried strip electrode plate that becomes the strip electrode plate by drying is provided with an undried active material layer that becomes the active material layer by drying on the current collector foil in addition to the undried protective layer, and the drying process of the protective layer is also a process of drying the undried active material layer.

[0020] (5) The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in (4), wherein the above-mentioned protective layer heating process is the following process: the active material layer contained in the above-mentioned undried active material layer is also irradiated with the above-mentioned linear P-polarized laser to heat it.

[0021] (6) Or the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plate as described in (4) may be configured such that: the above-mentioned protective layer drying process includes a laser heating process, which is carried out in parallel with the above-mentioned protective layer heating process, and the above-mentioned undried active material layer is irradiated with a laser other than the above-mentioned linear P-polarized laser to heat it.

[0022] (7) Another solution is a manufacturing apparatus for a strip electrode plate, which includes: a strip-shaped current collector foil extending in the length direction; an active material layer disposed on the surface of the current collector foil with exposed foil portions; and a protective layer disposed between the exposed foil portions and the active material layer. The manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate includes: a transport unit that transports an undried strip electrode plate onto the current collector foil in a transport direction consistent with the length direction, the undried strip electrode plate having an undried protective layer that becomes the protective layer through drying; and a protective layer drying unit that dries the undried protective layer, the protective layer drying unit having a protective layer heating unit that irradiates the irradiated portion of the protective layer contained in the undried protective layer with a linearly polarized P-light laser at an incident angle of 20 degrees to 67 degrees to heat the undried protective layer.

[0023] The protective layer drying section of the aforementioned manufacturing apparatus includes a protective layer heating section. This heating section irradiates each irradiated area with a linearly polarized P-laser incident at an angle ranging from 20 degrees to 67 degrees, thereby heating the undried protective layer. Therefore, in this manufacturing apparatus, the undried protective layer can be efficiently heated in the protective layer heating section, which facilitates the drying of the protective layer.

[0024] (8) Furthermore, the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in (7) may be configured such that: the current collector foil is made of aluminum, and the heating part of the protective layer also irradiates each of the irradiated portions contained in the adjacent exposed portions of the foil exposed portions that are adjacent to the undried protective layer with the linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 25 degrees to 88 degrees to heat them.

[0025] (9) Furthermore, the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in (7) or (8) may be configured such that the protective layer drying section further includes a protective layer hot air drying section, which blows hot air onto the hot air heating section of the undried protective layer, including the part of the protective layer that is irradiated, in parallel with the irradiation of the linear P-polarized laser in the protective layer heating section, and heats and dries it.

[0026] (10) or the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in (9) may be configured such that: the hot air drying section of the protective layer is provided with a hot air delivery section that delivers the hot air at a position on the side of the undried protective layer that is closer to the hot air heating section than the hot air heating section in the transport direction, and a hot air suction section is provided at a position on the other side of the hot air heating section than the hot air heating section in the transport direction, and the hot air suction section attracts the hot air delivered from the hot air delivery section and heats the hot air heating section of the undried protective layer.

[0027] (11) Furthermore, the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in any one of (7) to (10) may be configured such that: the undried strip electrode plate is further provided with an undried active material layer on the current collector foil, which is dried to become the active material layer, and the protective layer drying section also dries the undried active material layer.

[0028] (12) The manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in (11) may be configured such that the heating section of the protective layer is configured to also irradiate the irradiated portion of the active material layer contained in the undried active material layer with the linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 20 degrees to 67 degrees to heat it.

[0029] (13) Or the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate as described in (11) may be configured such that the above-mentioned protective layer drying section has a laser heating section, which heats the above-mentioned undried protective layer by irradiating the above-mentioned undried active material layer with a laser other than the above-mentioned linear P-polarized laser in parallel with the heating of the above-mentioned protective layer heating section. Attached Figure Description

[0030] Figure 1 These are explanatory diagrams of the strip electrode plates involved in embodiments 1 to 3 and variations 1 to 3.

[0031] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating the manufacturing process of the strip electrode plate involved in embodiments 1 to 3 and variations 1 to 3.

[0032] Figure 3 This is an explanatory diagram showing the general configuration of the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate involved in Embodiments 1, 2, and Modifications 1 to 3.

[0033] Figure 4 This is an explanatory diagram of the transport direction cross-section of the drying apparatus involved in Embodiment 1 and Modification 1.

[0034] Figure 5 This is a top view illustration of the drying apparatus according to Embodiment 1 and Modification 1.

[0035] Figure 6 This is an explanatory diagram of the transport direction cross-section of the drying device involved in variation mode 2.

[0036] Figure 7 This is a top view illustration of the drying apparatus involved in variation 2.

[0037] Figure 8 This is an explanatory diagram of the transport direction cross-section of the drying device involved in variation mode 3.

[0038] Figure 9This is a top view illustration of the drying apparatus involved in variation 3.

[0039] Figure 10 This is an explanatory diagram of the width-direction cross-section of the drying apparatus according to Embodiment 2.

[0040] Figure 11 This is a top view illustration of the drying apparatus according to Embodiment 2.

[0041] Figure 12 This is an explanatory diagram showing the schematic configuration of the manufacturing apparatus for the strip electrode plate according to Embodiment 3.

[0042] Figure 13 This is an explanatory diagram of the transport direction cross-section of the drying apparatus according to Embodiment 3.

[0043] Figure 14 This is a top view illustration of the drying apparatus according to Embodiment 3.

[0044] Figure 15 This is a graph showing the relationship between the incident angle θi and the absorptivity when aluminum is irradiated with P-polarized and S-polarized light.

[0045] Figure 16 This is a graph showing the relationship between the incident angle θi and the absorptivity when copper is irradiated with P-polarized and S-polarized light.

[0046] Figure 17 This is a graph showing the relationship between the incident angle θi and the absorptivity when alumina is irradiated with P-polarized and S-polarized light. Detailed Implementation

[0047] (Implementation Method 1)

[0048] Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the manufacture of a strip electrode plate 1 extending in the length direction LH according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention and the manufacturing apparatus 100 of the strip electrode plate 1 will be described. Figure 1 The strip electrode plate 1 shown is used as an electrode in energy storage devices such as secondary batteries. This strip electrode plate 1 is used, for example, in the manufacture of square and sealed lithium-ion secondary batteries mounted in vehicles such as HV, PHEV, and BEV. Specifically, the strip electrode plate 1 is a strip-shaped positive electrode plate used to manufacture the flat, wound, or laminated electrode body that constitutes the battery.

[0049] The strip electrode plate 1 of this embodiment 1 includes: a strip-shaped current collector foil 3 extending in the length direction LH and made of aluminum; a strip-shaped active material layer 5 disposed on a first surface 3A and a second surface 3B of the current collector foil 3 and extending in the length direction LH; and a strip-shaped protective layer 7 also extending in the length direction LH. The two end edges of the current collector foil 3 in the width direction WH, orthogonal to the length direction LH, form the exposed strip-shaped foil exposure portion 3E of the current collector foil 3. Furthermore, the protective layer 7 is disposed between the foil exposure portion 3E and the active material layer 5. The active material layer 5 includes: lithium transition metal composite oxide particles as active material particles; acetylene black as conductive particles; and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) as a binder. Furthermore, the protective layer 7 includes: alumina particles as insulating ceramic particles; and PVDF as a binder.

[0050] The active material layer 5 is obtained by coating the active material paste 5Px onto the current collector foil 3 and then drying it (see reference). Figure 3 The active material paste 5Px is obtained by dispersing active material particles, conductive particles, and a binder in N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP) as a dispersant. In this embodiment 1, the solid content of the active material paste 5Px is adjusted to approximately 55-60 wt%.

[0051] On the other hand, the protective layer 7 is obtained by applying a protective paste 7Px onto the current collector foil 3 and then drying it (see reference). Figure 3 The protective paste 7Px is obtained by dispersing insulating ceramic particles and a binder in NMP as a dispersant. However, the solid content of the protective paste 7Px is approximately 25 to 30 wt%. That is, compared with the active material paste 5Px, the protective paste 7Px contains a higher proportion of dispersant, and compared with the undried active material layer 5x formed by coating the active material paste 5Px onto the current collector foil 3, the amount of dispersant per unit volume of the undried protective layer 7x formed by coating the protective paste 7Px onto the current collector foil 3 is higher.

[0052] Therefore, the undried protective layer 7x is more difficult to dry than the undried active material layer 5x. Furthermore, the protective paste 7Px using alumina particles and the undried protective layer 7x coated with it in Embodiment 1 are bright white, making them less likely to absorb infrared radiation. From this perspective, the undried protective layer 7x is more difficult to heat and dry than the undried active material layer 5x. Therefore, if the undried protective layer 7x is dried in parallel with the undried active material layer 5x using hot air or laser, it is easy for the undried protective layer 7x to become insufficiently dried.

[0053] However, it is known that when linearly polarized laser light (wavelength λ = 1064 nm) is irradiated onto a flat surface of a metal (e.g., aluminum, copper), the absorption rate varies with the incident angle θi (θi = 0–90 degrees) for P-polarized light parallel to the incident plane and S-polarized light perpendicular to the incident plane. Specifically, when S-polarized laser light is incident on aluminum, the following characteristics are observed: the absorption rate is 5% at perpendicular incidence (incident angle θi = 0 degrees), but gradually decreases as the incident angle θi increases, reaching 0% at an incident angle θi of 90 degrees. On the other hand, when P-polarized laser light is incident on aluminum, the following characteristics are observed: Under perpendicular incidence (incident angle θi = 0 degrees), the absorptivity is 5%, similar to S-polarized light. However, the absorptivity gradually increases with increasing incident angle θi, reaching a maximum of 22% at approximately 84 degrees. Then, it decreases rapidly with further increases in incident angle, reaching 0% at 90 degrees (see reference). Figure 15 Furthermore, within the incident angle θi range of approximately 25–88 degrees, the absorption rate of P-polarized light is better than that of perpendicularly incident or obliquely incident S-polarized light. Additionally, when S-polarized or P-polarized light is incident on copper, although the absorption rate is lower than that of aluminum, it exhibits roughly the same characteristics (see reference). Figure 16 Furthermore, within the incident angle θi range of approximately 30–86 degrees, the absorption rate of P-polarized light is better than that of perpendicularly incident or obliquely incident S-polarized light. Therefore, it is determined that when P-polarized laser light is obliquely incident on aluminum or copper towards the irradiated area, it absorbs the laser more efficiently than when using S-polarized or randomly polarized (unpolarized) laser light.

[0054] Furthermore, regarding the flat surface of alumina, if a P-polarized laser is incident obliquely, it is more easily absorbed compared to situations using S-polarized or randomly polarized (unpolarized) lasers (see [reference]). Figure 17 That is, it was determined that if a P-polarized laser is incident obliquely at an angle of θi of 20–67 degrees onto a flat surface of alumina, the laser absorption is more efficient compared to the case of obliquely incident S-polarized or randomly polarized (unpolarized) laser. Furthermore, it was found that even when irradiating an undried protective layer 7x with a large accumulation of ceramic particles such as alumina, a difference in absorption rate occurs between the P-polarized and S-polarized lasers. In other words, it was found that if a P-polarized laser is incident obliquely at an angle of θi of 20–67 degrees onto an undried protective layer 7x, it is more easily absorbed and the undried protective layer 7x dries more readily compared to the case of obliquely incident S-polarized or randomly polarized (unpolarized) laser. Although the incident angles of the laser incident on each ceramic particle vary, when considering the average incident angles on each ceramic particle, it can be considered that this is due to the dependence on the incident angle θi relative to the undried protective layer 7x.

[0055] Therefore, in this embodiment 1, when the undried active material layer 5x and the undried protective layer 7x formed on the current collector foil 3 are subjected to hot air drying, at least the irradiated portion 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x is irradiated with laser to promote its drying. Furthermore, the laser irradiated onto the irradiated portion 7xp is linearly polarized and P-polarized at each location of the irradiated portion 7xp. Additionally, in Figure 4 In the image, the direction of laser polarization on the irradiated part 7xp is indicated by a thick double arrow.

[0056] First, refer to Figure 2 as well as Figure 3 Here is a general description of the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plates 1a and 1 using the manufacturing apparatus 100. In the first unwinding process S1, the current collector foil 3 wound on the roll 111 is unwound by the unwinding device 110A and fed into the coating apparatus 120.

[0057] In the first electrode forming process S2, in the coating apparatus 120, an undried strip electrode plate 1xa is formed on the first surface 3A of the current collector foil 3 by using the active material paste 5Px contained in the first container 121 and the protective paste 7Px contained in the second container 122, wherein a strip of undried active material layer 5x and a strip of undried protective layer 7x are provided on the coating apparatus 120. Furthermore, as described above, the undried active material layer 5x becomes the active material layer 5 after drying. Furthermore, the undried protective layer 7x becomes the protective layer 7 after drying.

[0058] In this embodiment 1, the coating apparatus 120 is specifically a die extrusion coating machine. It continuously discharges an active material paste 5Px and a protective paste 7Px onto the first surface 3A of the current collector foil 3, which is being transported in the longitudinal direction LH, to form a strip-shaped undried active material layer 5x and an undried insulating protective layer 7x along it. Additionally, an exposed foil portion 3E is left on the outer side WHO of the current collector foil 3 in the width direction. Furthermore, as described above, the undried insulating protective layer 7x contains a greater amount of solvent (NMP) per unit volume compared to the undried active material layer 5x.

[0059] Next, in the first drying process S3, the undried active material layer 5x and the undried insulating protective layer 7x of the undried strip electrode plate 1xa are dried using the drying apparatus 130, which will be described in detail later, to form a strip electrode plate 1a having an active material layer 5 and an insulating protective layer 7 on the first surface 3A.

[0060] Then, in the first winding process S4, the strip electrode plate 1a is temporarily wound onto the spool 141 by the winding device 140A. Then, in the second unwinding process S5, the strip electrode plate 1a on the spool 141 is unwound by the unwinding device 110B. Then, the current collector foil 3 is reversed by the reversing roller 112, so that the second surface 3B becomes the coating surface, and is fed into the coating device 120, which is the same as described above.

[0061] In the second electrode forming process S6, in the coating apparatus 120, an active material paste 5Px and a protective paste 7Px are continuously coated onto the second surface 3B of the current collector foil 3 in the strip electrode plate 1a that is transported in the longitudinal direction LH, thereby forming an undried strip electrode plate 1x having a strip-shaped undried active material layer 5x and an undried insulating protective layer 7x.

[0062] Next, in the second drying process S7, the drying apparatus 130, which will be described in detail later, is also used to dry the undried active material layer 5x and the undried insulating protective layer 7x of the undried strip electrode plate 1x, forming a strip electrode plate 1 having an active material layer 5 and an insulating protective layer 7 on the first surface 3A and the second surface 3B, respectively.

[0063] Then, in the pressure process S8, the pressure device 150 (specifically, roller stamping) is used to transport the strip electrode plate 1 in the length direction LH and perform roller stamping in the thickness direction TH to increase the density of the active material layer 5 and the insulating protective layer 7, thus completing the strip electrode plate 1.

[0064] Furthermore, in the cutting process S9, the strip electrode plate 1 (refer to) is cut using the cutting blade 161. Figure 1 The electrode plate 2 is cut in half in the width direction WH to form a segmented electrode plate 2. In the next second winding process S10, the segmented electrode plate 2 is wound onto the winding shaft 142 by the winding device 140B.

[0065] Next, refer to Figure 2 , Figure 4 , Figure 5 The first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7, as well as the drying apparatus 130 used in them, will be explained. Since the second drying step S7 is largely the same as the first drying step S3, the first drying step S3 will be the primary focus of the explanation.

[0066] The first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7 are examples of protective layer drying steps that dry the undried protective layer 7x, which becomes the protective layer 7. Furthermore, the first drying step S3 includes a first heating step S31 (an example of a protective layer heating step), which in... Figure 2The irradiated portions 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x located on both sides of the width direction WH, indicated by solid lines, are heated by linearly p-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2, which are linearly polarized and p-polarized, at an incident angle θi of 20 to 67 degrees. Similarly, the second drying process S7 also includes a second heating process S71, in which linearly p-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 are irradiated onto the irradiated portions 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x. Therefore, in the first heating process S31 and the second heating process S71, the undried protective layer 7x can be heated efficiently and dried, which is conducive to the formation of the protective layer 7.

[0067] Furthermore, protective layer 7 and undried protective layer 7x (see reference) Figure 1 The strip-shaped electrode plates 1xa and 1x, which are extended in the length direction LH, are dried in the first drying process S3 and the second drying process S7, while being transported in the transport direction CH, which is consistent with the length direction LH. Therefore, the strip-shaped undried protective layer 7x transported in the transport direction CH can be continuously irradiated with linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2, and the undried protective layer 7x can be continuously heated.

[0068] Furthermore, the first drying step S3 of this embodiment 1 also has the following features: Figure 2 As shown by the dashed line, the first hot air drying step S32 is an example of a hot air drying step for the protective layer, which dries the undried protective layer 7x by heating it with hot air HA in parallel with the first heating step S31. Similarly, the second drying step S7 includes a second hot air drying step S72, which dries the undried protective layer 7x by heating it with hot air HA. Thus, in addition to heating the irradiated portion 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x using linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 in the first heating step S31 and the second heating step S71, the first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7 also include a first hot air drying step S32 and a second hot air drying step S72, which dry the hot air heated portion 7xw by heating it with hot air HA. Therefore, the undried protective layer 7x can be dried more efficiently. Furthermore, by utilizing hot air HA, the hot air HA containing a large amount of evaporated dispersant (NMP in this embodiment 1) can be removed from the vicinity of the undried protective layer 7x, thus facilitating the drying of the undried protective layer 7x.

[0069] Furthermore, as described above, in this embodiment 1, in addition to the undried protective layer 7x, the current collector foil 3 also has an undried active material layer 5x that becomes an active material layer 5 through drying. Therefore, the first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7 are also steps that dry the undried active material layer 5x. Moreover, in this embodiment 1, specifically, in the first hot air drying step S32 and the second hot air drying step S72, which use hot air HA to dry the undried protective layer 7x, the undried active material layer 5x is also heated and dried. As a result, compared to the case where the undried active material layer 5x is dried separately from the first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7, the strip electrode plates 1a and 1 can be manufactured in a shorter number of steps.

[0070] In this embodiment 1, using Figure 4 , Figure 5 The drying apparatus 130 shown performs the first drying step S3, which includes a first heating step S31 and a first hot air drying step S32, or the second drying step S7, which includes a second heating step S71 and a second hot air drying step S72. The drying apparatus 130 has a transport section 131, which operates in a transport direction CH (which is aligned with the length direction LH). Figure 4 , Figure 5 The undried strip electrode plates 1xa and 1x, which have an undried protective layer 7x and an undried active material layer 5x, are transported on the current collector foil 3 in a left-right direction. In this embodiment 1, the transport section 131 specifically comprises multiple transport rollers. Furthermore, the drying apparatus 130 includes a drying section 132, which dries the undried protective layer 7x as an example of a protective layer drying section. In addition, in this embodiment 1, the drying section 132 also dries the undried active material layer 5x as described later.

[0071] Furthermore, the drying section 132 includes a heating section 133, which serves as an example of a protective layer heating section. This heating section 133 irradiates each irradiated portion 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x with linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 at an oblique incident angle θi, thereby heating the undried protective layer 7x. The incident angle θi relative to the undried protective layer 7x varies depending on each irradiated portion 7xp, but is set as a reference. Figure 17The range of incident angles θi1 to θi2 is defined as being between 20 and 67 degrees. Therefore, in the manufacturing method of this embodiment 1, during the first heating step S31 and the second heating step S71, the oblique incidence of linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 efficiently heats the undried protective layer 7x, contributing to the formation of the protective layer 7. Furthermore, in the drying apparatus 130, the oblique incidence of linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 within the aforementioned range, achieved by the heating unit 133, efficiently heats the undried protective layer 7x, contributing to the formation of the protective layer 7.

[0072] Furthermore, in this embodiment 1, the heating unit 133 also irradiates each irradiated portion 3Erp of at least one adjacent exposed portion 3Er adjacent to the undried protective layer 7x of the foil exposed portion 3E of the current collector foil 3 with a linear P-polarized laser LLP1 and LLP2 at an oblique incident angle θi, thereby heating them. The incident angle θi relative to the adjacent exposed portion 3Er also varies depending on each irradiated portion 3Erp, but is set as a reference. Figure 15 The range of incident angles θi1 to θi2 is defined as 25 to 88 degrees. Therefore, by obliquely incident within the aforementioned range using the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 formed by the heating unit 133, each irradiated portion 3Erp of the adjacent exposed portion 3Er can be efficiently heated. This indirectly heats the undried protective layer 7x adjacent to the adjacent exposed portion 3Er, promoting the drying of the protective layer 7. Furthermore, the irradiation by the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 in the first heating step S31 and the second heating step S71 also efficiently heats each irradiated portion 3Erp of the adjacent exposed portion 3Er, indirectly heating the undried protective layer 7x adjacent to it, thus promoting the drying of the protective layer 7.

[0073] Furthermore, linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 are generated by a linear P-polarized laser source 134 forming the heating section 133. The linear P-polarized laser source 134 consists of a laser source 134L, which generates unpolarized laser light as a fiber laser, and a polarizing optical system 134P. The polarizing optical system 134P uses multiple wavelength plates or DOEs to convert the unpolarized laser light into linearly polarized laser light. Simultaneously, the linear P-polarized laser source 134 branches the converted laser light into WH1 on the upstream side of the transport direction CH and the side facing the width direction WH. Figure 5 The P-polarized laser LLP1, which is shaped into a rectangle, moves from the upper left side of the center and then forms a rectangular straight line. On the upstream side of the transport direction CH, CHU faces the other side of the width direction WH, WH2. Figure 5The two lasers, LLP1 and LLP2, are linear P-polarized lasers that are shaped into rectangles (located in the lower left corner of the image). In this embodiment 1, the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 are irradiated from the downstream side CHD of the transport direction CH towards the upstream side CHU. However, alternatively, the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 can be irradiated from the upstream side CHU towards the downstream side CHD.

[0074] In addition to the heating unit 133, the drying unit 132 of the drying apparatus 130 of this embodiment 1 also has a hot air drying unit 136. This hot air drying unit 136 is an example of a protective layer hot air drying unit. It heats the undried protective layer 7x, including the irradiated portion 7xp, by blowing hot air HA in parallel with the irradiation of the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 from the heating unit 133. Furthermore, the hot air drying unit 136 of this embodiment 1 dries not only the undried protective layer 7x's hot air heated portion 7xw, but also the undried active material layer 5x's hot air heated portion 5xw.

[0075] The hot air drying unit 136 consists of a hot air delivery unit 137 and a hot air suction unit 138. The hot air delivery unit 137 is positioned upstream of the hot air heating units 7xw and 5xw in the transport direction CH. Figure 4 (The middle is the left side). And, as... Figure 4 , Figure 5 As shown by the white arrow, the hot air delivery section 137 extends along the upper surface of the hot air heating section 7xw and the hot air heating section 5xw in the width direction WH towards the downstream side CHD in the transport direction CH. Figure 4 , Figure 5 Hot air HA is blown out from the right side (center). Therefore, the hot air heating sections 7xw and 5xw are heated and dried by the hot air HA. On the other hand, the hot air suction unit 138 is positioned downstream of the hot air heating sections 7xw and 5xw in the transport direction CH at the CHD. Furthermore, the hot air suction unit 138 draws in the hot air HA containing vapors of a dispersant (NMP in this embodiment 1) after heating the hot air heating sections 7xw and 5xw over a distance LCH throughout the transport direction and discharges it to the outside.

[0076] Thus, in the drying apparatus 130, the drying section 132 has a hot air drying section 136, which heats the irradiated portion 7xp by blowing hot air HA onto the hot air heating section 7xw in parallel with the heating section 133, which heats the portion 7xp by irradiation using lasers LLP1 and LLP2, thereby drying it. Therefore, the undried protective layer 7x can be dried efficiently in a shorter time. Moreover, relative to the hot air heating section 7xw of the undried protective layer 7x, a hot air delivery section 137 is provided on either the upstream side CH1 (upstream side CHU in this embodiment 1) or the downstream side CHD in the transport direction CH, and a hot air suction section 138 is provided on the other side CH2 (downstream side CHD in this embodiment 1). Therefore, regardless of the size of the width dimension (width dimension WH) W3 of the current collector foil 3, the hot air HA can be used to dry the hot air heated parts of the undried protective layer 7x over a transport direction distance LCH longer than the width dimension W3. The transport direction distance LCH of the hot air heated parts 7xw and 5xw exposed to the hot air HA and heated can be freely set.

[0077] Furthermore, in the drying apparatus 130 of the manufacturing apparatus 100, the drying section 132 dries not only the undried protective layer 7x but also the undried active material layer 5x. Therefore, compared to the case where the undried active material layer 5x is not dried, the strip electrode plates 1a and 1 can be manufactured in a shorter time.

[0078] Furthermore, in the manufacturing method of Embodiment 1 described above, in the first winding step S4, the strip electrode plate 1a is temporarily wound onto the reel 141. Then, in the second unwinding step S5, the reel 141 with the strip electrode plate 1a wound on it is placed on the unwinding device 110B, and the strip electrode plate 1a is unwound from the reel 141 and fed into the coating device 120. However, for example, it is also possible to... Figure 2 As shown by the double-dotted line, the first winding process S4 and the second unwinding process S5 are skipped. That is, the strip electrode plate 1a obtained after the first drying process S3 may not be wound onto the roll 141, but instead its surface is reversed and it is fed into the coating apparatus 120 to perform the processes after the second electrode forming process S6.

[0079] Furthermore, in the manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment 1, the following is used: Figure 4 , Figure 5The drying apparatus 130 shown dries the undried protective layer 7x and the undried active material layer 5x of the undried strip electrode plates 1xa and 1x to obtain strip electrode plates 1a and 1 with dried protective layer 7 and active material layer 5. However, when drying the undried protective layer 7x and the undried active material layer 5x, in cases where a long time or long transport distance is required, multiple drying apparatuses 130 can be arranged in the transport direction CH to dry the undried protective layer 7x and the undried active material layer 5x. Alternatively, multiple heating sections 133 with linear P-polarized laser sources 134 and hot air drying sections 136 can be arranged in the drying apparatus 130 along the transport direction CH.

[0080] In addition, in this embodiment 1, linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 are used to heat only the irradiated portion 7xp and the irradiated portion 3Erp. However, in order to dry the undried protective layer 7x faster, in addition to the irradiated portion 7xp and the irradiated portion 3Erp, the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 are also used to heat the portion of the undried active material layer 5x adjacent to the irradiated portion 7xp.

[0081] (Transformation Method 1)

[0082] Next, a first variation of Embodiment 1 will be described. In Embodiment 1, as... Figure 5 As shown by the solid line, a single linear P-polarized laser source 134 is used to generate two linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 through branching. In contrast, in this modified version 1, as... Figure 5 As shown by the dashed line, two linear P-polarized laser sources 134A and 134B are used to generate one linear P-polarized laser LLP1 or one linear P-polarized laser LLP2, respectively.

[0083] In the drying apparatus 130 of this modified mode 1, although two linear P-polarized laser sources 134A and 134B are required, the output of each linear P-polarized laser source 134A and 134B only needs to be about half of that of the linear P-polarized laser source 134. Moreover, there is no need to generate two branched linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2. Therefore, the configuration of the polarization optical system used by the linear P-polarized laser sources 134A and 134B can be simplified.

[0084] (Transformation Method 2)

[0085] Next, regarding the second variation of implementation method 1, please refer to... Figure 6 , Figure 7 This will be explained in detail. In implementation method 1, as follows... Figure 5As shown by the solid line, two linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2, generated from a branch of a linear P-polarized laser source 134, are used to irradiate the irradiated portion 7xp in the undried protective layer 7x and the irradiated portion 3Erp in the adjacent exposed portion 3Er of the current collector foil 3 to heat the area.

[0086] In contrast, in the first drying process S3 and the second drying process S7 of this modified embodiment 2, and in the drying apparatus 230 of the manufacturing apparatus 200 that performs these processes S3 and S7, the heating unit 233, which serves as the drying section 232, uses... Figure 7 The linear P-polarized laser source 234 shown generates a linear P-polarized laser LLP. Similar to the linear P-polarized laser source 134 of Embodiment 1, the linear P-polarized laser source 234 irradiates the irradiated portion 7xp in the undried protective layer 7x and the irradiated portion 3Erp in the adjacent exposed portion 3Er of the current collector foil 3 with the linear P-polarized laser LLP, thus heating them. Furthermore, the linear P-polarized laser source 234 also irradiates the irradiated portion 5xp in the undried active material layer 5x with the linear P-polarized laser LLP at an oblique incidence, also heating the irradiated portion 5xp.

[0087] That is, in the drying apparatus 230 used in the first heating step S31 and the second heating step S71, the irradiated portion 5xp of the undried active material layer 5x is also heated by a linearly p-polarized laser LLP incident at an oblique angle. As a result, not only the undried protective layer 7x can be dried efficiently, but also the undried active material layer 5x can be dried efficiently.

[0088] In addition, the intensity per unit area of ​​the linear P-polarized laser LLP irradiating the irradiated parts 7xp, 3Erp and 5xp can be uniform, but the irradiation intensity of the irradiated parts 7xp and 3Erp can be increased compared with that of the irradiated part 5xp to further heat these parts.

[0089] Furthermore, in this modified embodiment 2, a linear P-polarized laser LLP generated by a single linear P-polarized laser source 234 is used to heat not only the irradiated portion 7xp and the irradiated portion 3Erp, but also the irradiated portion 5xp of the undried active material layer 5x. However, similar to embodiment 1, in addition to using linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 generated by the linear P-polarized laser source 134 to heat the irradiated portions 7xp and 3Erp, other linear P-polarized laser sources (not shown) can also be used to heat the irradiated portion 5xp of the undried active material layer 5x. Furthermore, in order to appropriately heat the irradiated portion 5xp of the undried active material layer 5x, which is larger than the irradiated portion 7xp, the irradiated portion 5xp can be divided, and multiple linear P-polarized laser sources can be used as other linear P-polarized laser sources, with each linear P-polarized laser source heating the divided irradiated portion 5xp.

[0090] (Transformation Method 3)

[0091] In the drying section 232 of the above-described modified form 2, the heating section 233 also irradiates the irradiated portion 5xp of the undried active material layer 5x with a linear P-polarized laser LLP from the linear P-polarized laser source 234, and also heats the irradiated portion 5xp (see reference). Figure 7 ).

[0092] In contrast, in the drying apparatus 330 of this modified embodiment, such as... Figure 8 , Figure 9 In the drying section 332 shown, a linear P-polarized laser source 134, identical to that in the heating section 133 of Embodiment 1, is used to generate two linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2. These lasers irradiate and heat the irradiated portions 7xp in the undried protective layer 7x and the irradiated portions 3Erp in the adjacent exposed portions 3Er of the current collector foil 3. In addition, the drying section 332 of this modified embodiment 3 includes a laser heating section 339 that generates a non-polarized laser LR, different from the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2. The non-polarized laser LR irradiates each irradiated portion 5xr within a rectangular area of ​​the undried active material layer 5x, heating each irradiated portion 5xr and aiding in drying. Therefore, the drying apparatus 330 can efficiently dry not only the undried protective layer 7x but also the undried active material layer 5x. Furthermore, in Figure 9 In the diagram, a symbol consisting of four double arrows intersecting at a 45-degree angle is used to represent the unpolarized laser LR illuminating the irradiated part 5xr.

[0093] That is, in the manufacturing method of this modified mode 3, such as Figure 2As shown by the dashed line, the first drying step S3 also includes a first laser heating step S33, which runs parallel to the first heating step S31 and the first hot air drying step S32. This first laser heating step S33 irradiates the irradiated portion 5xr of the undried active material layer 5x with an unpolarized laser LR, which is different from the linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2. Furthermore, the second drying step S7 includes a second laser heating step S73, which runs parallel to the second heating step S71 and the second hot air drying step S72. This second laser heating step S73 irradiates the irradiated portion 5xr (shown by the dashed line) with an unpolarized laser LR. Thus, in this manufacturing method, not only can the undried protective layer 7x be dried efficiently, but the undried active material layer 5x can also be dried efficiently.

[0094] (Implementation Method 2)

[0095] Next, regarding the manufacturing apparatus 500 according to the second embodiment, reference will be made mainly to... Figure 10 , Figure 11 To illustrate, in the drying apparatus 130-330 of the manufacturing apparatus 100-300 of Embodiment 1 and its variations 1-3, the linear P-polarized laser sources 134, 134A, 134B, and 234 are positioned downstream of the irradiated portion 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x in the transport direction CH. Figures 3-8 The position is located on the right side of the middle section, upstream of the transport direction CH (CHU) and below the thickness direction TH of the current collector foil 3 (THD). Figure 3 , Figure 5 , Figure 7 (from the lower side of the middle), linear P-polarized lasers LLP1, LLP2, and LLP are emitted.

[0096] In contrast, in the drying apparatus 530 of the manufacturing apparatus 500 of this embodiment 2, the linear P-polarized laser source 534A, which serves as the heating unit 533 in the drying section 532, is disposed on the side WH1, which is closer to the width direction WH than the undried active material layer 5x and the undried protective layer 7x. Figure 10 On the right side of the middle, Figure 11 (The upper side of the middle). Additionally, the linear P-polarized laser source 534B is positioned on the opposite side WH2, which is further along the width direction than the undried active material layer 5x and the undried protective layer 7x. Figure 10 On the left side of the middle, Figure 11 (The lower side of the middle).

[0097] Furthermore, the two linear P-polarized laser sources 534A and 534B are positioned towards the inside of the width direction WH (WHI) and below the thickness direction TH of the collector foil 3 (THD). Figure 10Linear P-polarized lasers LLP3 and LLP4 are emitted from the lower side of the undried protective layer 7x and the adjacent exposed portion 3Erp of the current collector foil 3, respectively. The linear P-polarized lasers LLP3 and LLP4 are then irradiated at an incident angle θi ranging from θi3 to θi4 within the range of 20 to 67 degrees, thereby heating these portions.

[0098] In addition, in the drying apparatus 530 of this embodiment 2, similarly to the drying apparatus 130 of embodiment 1, hot air HA blown from the hot air delivery section 137 toward the downstream side CHD of the transport direction CH is used to heat the hot air heating part 7xw of the undried protective layer 7x and the hot air heating part 5xw of the undried active material layer 5x to dry them.

[0099] In the drying apparatus 530 of this embodiment 2, as described above, two linear P-polarized laser sources 534A and 534B are used to heat the irradiated portion 7xp of the undried protective layer 7x extending in the length direction LH (transport direction CH) and the irradiated portion 3Erp of the adjacent exposed portion 3Er in the current collector foil 3, compared to the current collector foil 3 being heated by irradiating linear P-polarized lasers LLP3 and LLP4 from the outside WHO in the width direction WH. Therefore, compared to the drying apparatus 130 of Embodiment 1, etc., which irradiates linear P-polarized lasers LLP1 and LLP2 from the downstream side CHD in the transport direction CH, it is easier to uniformly irradiate the irradiated portion 7xp and the irradiated portion 3Erp with linear P-polarized lasers LLP3 and LLP4 respectively.

[0100] Furthermore, the manufacturing methods of the strip electrode plate 1 in Embodiment 2 are the same as those in Embodiment 1 (see [reference]). Figure 2 ).

[0101] In the drying apparatus 530 of this embodiment 2, a linear P-polarized laser LLP3 is irradiated on the undried protective layer 7x on one side WH1 of the two undried protective layers 7x extending along the length direction LH (transport direction CH) in the width direction WH, by a linear P-polarized laser source 534A disposed on the opposite side WH1. Conversely, a linear P-polarized laser LLP4 is irradiated on the undried protective layer 7x on the other side WH2 by a linear P-polarized laser source 534B disposed on the opposite side WH2. However, in order to set a larger incident angle θi, the two linear P-polarized lasers LLP3 and LLP4 can also be arranged to irradiate the undried protective layer 7x alternately. That is, the linear P-polarized laser LLP4 can be irradiated onto the undried protective layer 7x on one side WH1 from the linear P-polarized laser source 534B configured on the other side WH2, and the linear P-polarized laser LLP3 can be irradiated onto the undried protective layer 7x on the other side WH2 from the linear P-polarized laser source 534A configured on one side WH1.

[0102] (Implementation Method 3)

[0103] Next, regarding the manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus 600 of the strip electrode plates 11a and 11 according to the third embodiment, please refer mainly to... Figures 12 to 14 To illustrate. In the aforementioned Embodiment 1, etc., during the manufacture of the strip electrode plates 1a, 1, in addition to drying the undried protective layer 7x formed by coating the current collector foil 3 with a protective paste 7Px to form a protective layer 7, the undried active material layer 5x formed by coating the current collector foil 3 with an active material paste 5Px to form an active material layer 5 is also dried.

[0104] In contrast, in this embodiment 3, the protective layer 7 is formed by drying the undried protective layer 7x formed by applying a protective paste 7Px to the current collector foil 3, similar to embodiment 1. However, regarding the active material layer 15, in this embodiment 3, the active material layer 15 is formed using an active material 15P that does not require drying on the current collector foil 3, which differs from embodiment 1. Furthermore, along with this difference, in this embodiment 3, there are differences from embodiment 1 in the first electrode forming step S2, the first drying step S3, the second electrode forming step S6, and the second drying step S7 of each step S1 to S10 in the manufacturing method of the strip electrode plates 11a, 11 and the segmented electrode plate 12 (see embodiment 1). Figure 2 , Figure 12 ).

[0105] That is, when manufacturing the strip electrode plates 11a and 11, in the first electrode forming step S2 and the second electrode forming step S6, in the coating apparatus 620, the active material material 15P contained in the first container 621 is used to form a strip-shaped active material layer 15 on the first surface 3A of the current collector foil 3. In addition, a protective paste 7Px contained in the second container 122 is used to form a strip-shaped undried protective layer 7x adjacent to the active material layer 15 on the first surface 3A of the current collector foil 3.

[0106] As the active material 15P, for example, a mixed powder obtained by mixing active material particles, conductive particles, and a portion of fibrous resin particles such as PTFE can be cited. In addition, as a method for forming an active material layer 15 on the surfaces 3A and 3B of the current collector foil 3 using the mixed powder, i.e., the active material 15P, an example can be the following method: mixing the aforementioned mixed powder to fibrousize a portion of the resin particles to form a mesh structure that connects the active material particles, and then pressing the mixed powder into a sheet to form an independent active material layer 15, and then attaching the active material layer 15 to the current collector foil 3.

[0107] Furthermore, a protective paste 7Px is applied, for example by die extrusion coating, between the strip-shaped active material layer 15 formed on the surfaces 3A and 3B of the current collector foil 3 and the exposed portion 3E of the current collector foil 3, forming a strip-shaped undried protective layer 7x. Thus, an undried strip electrode plate 1xa with two strip-shaped undried protective layers 7x is formed (see reference). Figure 1 ).

[0108] Furthermore, in the first drying step S3 and the second drying step S7, the drying apparatus 630, which will be described in detail later, is used to dry only the undried insulating protective layer 7x, forming a strip electrode plate 11a having an active material layer 5 and an insulating protective layer 7 on the first surface 3A, or a strip electrode plate 11 having an active material layer 5 and an insulating protective layer 7 on both surfaces 3A and 3B.

[0109] Next, the drying apparatus 630 in the manufacturing apparatus 600 of this embodiment 3 will be described. In the drying apparatus 130 of embodiment 1 (see...) Figure 4 , Figure 5 In the process, the hot air delivery section 137 and the hot air suction section 138 constituting the hot air drying section 136 are used to dry not only the hot air heated portion 7xw of the undried protective layer 7x, but also the hot air heated portion 5xw of the undried active material layer 5x. Therefore, as Figure 5 As shown by the white arrow, hot air HA is blown out from the hot air outlet 137 in a strip shape that extends in the width direction WH.

[0110] In contrast, in this embodiment 3, the hot air delivery section 637 in the hot air drying section 636 blows out two hot air HAs to the hot air heating section 7xw, which includes the irradiated portion 7xp, within the two strip-shaped undried protective layers 7x formed on the transported undried strip electrode plates 1xa and 1x. This differs from the drying apparatus 130 of embodiment 1. As a result, the hot air HAs do not blow onto the active material layer 15, which does not need to be dried, thus efficiently drying the undried protective layer 7x. Furthermore, in the drying apparatus 630 of this embodiment 3, the two hot air HAs not only heat the hot air heating section 7xw but also heat the portion of the adjacent exposed portion 3Er of the foil exposed portion 3E of the current collector foil 3 adjacent to the hot air heating section 7xw, thereby promoting the heating of the hot air heating section 7xw.

[0111] In addition, in Embodiment 3, an example is shown in which an active material layer 15 that does not require drying is formed on the current collector foil 3. However, it is also possible to use an active material layer 5 formed by first applying an active material paste 5Px to the current collector foil 3 and drying it, and then applying a protective paste 7Px using the drying apparatus 630 described above to form an undried protective layer 7x.

[0112] The present invention has been described above with respect to embodiments 1 to 3 and variations 1 to 3. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, etc., and can of course be applied by appropriate modifications without departing from its concept.

[0113] For example, as in the strip electrode plate 1 formed in Embodiment 1, an example is shown where a strip-shaped active material layer 5, 15 extending in the length direction LH is formed on a strip-shaped current collector foil 3 (see reference). Figure 1 However, in addition to this, a strip electrode plate can also be formed in the following form: multiple island-shaped active material layers with rectangular or other planar shapes are formed on the strip-shaped current collector foil 3 and are intermittently arranged in the length direction LH, and are independent of each other. Furthermore, in such a strip electrode plate with independent active material layers, independent protective layers with linear or other line segment shapes, L-shaped, U-shaped, rectangular ring shapes, etc., can also be provided at necessary locations between the independent active material layers and the exposed foil around them.

[0114] Furthermore, in various embodiments such as 1, an example using a current-collecting foil 3 made of aluminum is shown. However, it can also be applied when using a current-collecting foil made of copper to manufacture a strip electrode plate.

[0115] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures

[0116] CH transport direction

[0117] CH1 (transportation direction) side

[0118] The other side of CH2 (transportation direction)

[0119] LH length direction

[0120] WH width direction

[0121] WH1 (width direction) side

[0122] The other side of WH2 (in the width direction)

[0123] 1, 1a, 11, 11a strip electrode plates

[0124] 1x, 1xa, 11x, 11xa undried strip electrode plates

[0125] 3 collector foils

[0126] 3A (current collector foil) first surface (surface)

[0127] 3B (current collector foil) second surface (surface)

[0128] 3E foil exposed part

[0129] 3Er adjacent exposed parts

[0130] 3Erp irradiated area (exposed irradiated area)

[0131] 5.15 Active Material Layer (Active Material Layer)

[0132] 5x Undried Active Material Layer

[0133] 5xp irradiated area (irradiated area of ​​active material layer)

[0134] 5xr irradiated area (irradiated area of ​​active material layer)

[0135] 5xw hot air heating element

[0136] 7 protective layers

[0137] 7x Undried protective layer

[0138] 7xp irradiated area (protective layer irradiated area)

[0139] 7xw hot air heating element

[0140] Manufacturing units of 100, 200, 300, 500, and 600

[0141] Drying devices 130, 230, 330, 530, 630

[0142] 131 Transport Department

[0143] Drying sections 132, 232, 332, 532, and 632 (protective layer drying section)

[0144] Heating sections 133, 233, and 533 (protective layer heating section)

[0145] Linear P-polarized laser sources LLP1, LLP2, LLP, LLP3, LLP4; linear P-polarized laser sources θi, θi1, θi2, θi3, θi4 (for linear P-polarized lasers); incident angle 134L, 234L laser sources.

[0146] 134P and 234P polarizing optical systems

[0147] 136, 636 Hot Air Drying Section (Protective Layer Hot Air Drying Section)

[0148] 137, 637 Hot Air Delivery Unit

[0149] 138, 638 Hot Air Suction Unit

[0150] HA hot air

[0151] 339 Laser heating section

[0152] LR unpolarized laser (other lasers)

[0153] S2 Electrode Formation Process

[0154] S3 First Drying Process (Protective Layer Drying Process)

[0155] S31 First heating process (protective layer heating process)

[0156] S32 First hot air drying process (protective layer hot air drying process) S33 First laser heating process (laser heating process)

[0157] S6 Second electrode formation process; S7 Second drying process (protective layer drying process)

[0158] S71 Second heating process (protective layer heating process)

[0159] S72 Second hot air drying process (protective layer hot air drying process) S73 Second laser heating process (laser heating process)

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a strip electrode plate, the strip electrode plate comprising: a strip-shaped current-collecting foil extending in a length direction; an active material layer disposed on the surface of the current-collecting foil, leaving exposed portions of the current-collecting foil; and a protective layer disposed between the exposed portions of the foil and the active material layer, wherein, The manufacturing method of the above-mentioned strip electrode plate includes a protective layer drying step, which dries the undried protective layer that has been disposed on the current collector foil and has become the protective layer through drying. The aforementioned protective layer drying process includes a protective layer heating process, in which the irradiated portion of the undried protective layer is irradiated with a linearly polarized P-beam laser at an incident angle of 20 to 67 degrees.

2. The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in claim 1, wherein, The aforementioned current collector foil is made of aluminum. The above-mentioned protective layer heating process is as follows: the exposed portion of the above-mentioned foil exposed portion, including at least the adjacent exposed portion adjacent to the above-mentioned undried protective layer, is also irradiated with the above-mentioned linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 25 degrees to 88 degrees to heat it.

3. The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in claim 1 or 2, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer drying process also includes a protective layer hot air drying process, which runs parallel to the aforementioned protective layer heating process. Hot air is blown onto the hot air heating portion of the undried protective layer, including the portion of the protective layer that has been irradiated, to heat and dry it.

4. The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, The undried strip electrode plate, which becomes the aforementioned strip electrode plate through drying, has an undried active material layer on the aforementioned current collector foil in addition to the aforementioned undried protective layer. This undried active material layer becomes the aforementioned active material layer through drying. The aforementioned protective layer drying process is also a process for drying the aforementioned undried active material layer.

5. The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in claim 4, wherein, The above-mentioned protective layer heating process is as follows: the active material layer contained in the above-mentioned undried active material layer is also irradiated with the above-mentioned linear P-polarized laser to heat it.

6. The method for manufacturing the strip electrode plate as described in claim 4, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer drying process includes a laser heating process, which runs in parallel with the aforementioned protective layer heating process. This laser heating process involves irradiating the undried active material layer with a laser other than the aforementioned linear P-polarized laser to heat it.

7. An apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate, the strip electrode plate comprising: a strip-shaped current-collecting foil extending in a longitudinal direction; an active material layer disposed on the surface of the current-collecting foil, leaving exposed portions thereof; and a protective layer disposed between the exposed portions and the active material layer, wherein, The aforementioned manufacturing apparatus for strip electrode plates includes: A transport unit transports an undried strip electrode plate onto the current collector foil along a transport direction consistent with the aforementioned length direction. The undried strip electrode plate is provided with an undried protective layer that has been dried to form the aforementioned protective layer. The protective layer drying section dries the aforementioned undried protective layer. The aforementioned protective layer drying section includes a protective layer heating section, which irradiates the irradiated portion of the protective layer contained in the aforementioned undried protective layer with a linearly polarized P-beam laser at an incident angle of 20 to 67 degrees, thereby heating the aforementioned undried protective layer.

8. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as described in claim 7, wherein, The aforementioned current collector foil is made of aluminum. The aforementioned protective layer heating section also irradiates the exposed portion of at least one of the exposed portions of the foil that is adjacent to the aforementioned undried protective layer with the aforementioned linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 25 degrees to 88 degrees to heat it.

9. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as described in claim 7 or 8, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer drying section also includes a protective layer hot air drying section, which blows hot air onto the hot air heating portion of the undried protective layer, including the irradiated portion of the protective layer, in parallel with the irradiation of the aforementioned linear P-polarized laser in the aforementioned protective layer heating section, thereby heating and drying it.

10. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as claimed in claim 9, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer hot air drying section has a hot air delivery section disposed on the side of the undried protective layer that is closer to the hot air heating section than the hot air heating section in the transport direction, and a hot air suction section disposed on the other side of the undried protective layer that is closer to the transport direction. The hot air suction section draws the hot air delivered from the hot air delivery section and heated the hot air heating section of the undried protective layer.

11. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as described in any one of claims 7 to 10, wherein, The aforementioned undried strip electrode plate also has an undried active material layer on the aforementioned current collector foil, which is formed into the aforementioned active material layer through drying. The aforementioned protective layer drying section also dries the aforementioned undried active material layer.

12. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as claimed in claim 11, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer heating section is configured such that the portion of the active material layer contained in the aforementioned undried active material layer that is irradiated is also irradiated with the aforementioned linear P-polarized laser at an incident angle of 20 degrees to 67 degrees to heat it.

13. The apparatus for manufacturing a strip electrode plate as claimed in claim 11, wherein, The aforementioned protective layer drying section has a laser heating section, which, in parallel with the aforementioned protective layer heating section, heats the aforementioned undried active material layer by irradiating it with a laser other than the aforementioned linear P-polarized laser.

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